Primeval and You: The After Life
by Katy-The-Platypus
Summary: Thirteen years after 'The Second Chapter' and the event which rocked the ARC and your life is slowly deteriorating. With the children of your friends growing up around you, you can't help but wonder what might have been. Amongst the lies and betrayals of what's left of your family, something sinister is moving in the shadows... Sequel to 'Second Chapter' and 'Primeval and You'.
1. Prologue

**As promised, the sequel is here. This is going to be somewhat darker and grim as the previous two, but loosing a son may do that to you. (This will make NO sense unless you've read the previous ones.) I've got the Epilogue done, the final sequence done and the first 15 or so chapters done but the middle still needs some more meat. As this is a story centred around _you, _what do you want to see happen? Let me know!**

**I must also say HAPPY BIRTHDAY! To Ben Mansfield and to PrimevalIs MyNameAnd IloveBecker.**

_Ottabiano, Italy, 79AD. _

Two people, an elderly lady and a young boy just short of fourteen years old, were hurrying between the stone houses in a race against time. The elderly woman was in her forties and her mousy brown hair was piled into a bun on the top of her head. She discretely checked her watch, covering it up by scratching her neck. They had half an hour before Pompeii was history, plenty of time to locate the anomaly that was setting off the portable ADD.

"Is this thing even in Pompeii, mum?" the brunette boy behind the woman grumbled.

"Of course it is, Alexander." the woman snapped, leading her son down another side street. "It's not far now."

"I hope so. My feet are killing me!"

"That wont be the only thing killing you in a minute!" the woman snapped. "Now keep walking!" the boy and his mother fell into silence, walking steadily for another ten minutes, eventually finding the glittering ball of light that lead out of this soon-to-be hell hole. "There. Through it. Now." the woman ordered her son and Alexander obeyed.

The boy stepped through from the busy, dirty streets of Italy, into the dark, ominous forest of the Triassic. "Will this thing close in time?"

"The past wasn't damaged by the eruption." Alexander's mother snapped as though by way of answer and stormed off.

"Well I wouldn't know that, would I?" Alexander muttered under his breath. Alexander had spent his whole life hoping from place to place. His name was that of his mother's lover's middle name. His mother had taught him everything he needed to know, even though she never came across as the motherly type and there seemed to be no form of maternal instinct. But it had always been the two of them, no father and no brother or sister.

Alexander didn't like to ask how they ended up travelling through time because it provoked anger from his mother. The same with asking about his father.

But his mother had said she had a plan. A plan that would soon make everything clear. All Alexander would have to do was play the part they were best at, and his mother's enemies would be gone and he could have a normal life.

His part?

To kill.

**Chapter 1 will be up tomorrow if people review! * pointed look * Or maybe even this evening...**


	2. Adjusting

_Thirteen years later. 2025_

You raise your head at the sound of footsteps making their way towards the top of the stairs and your force a smile onto your face, rinsing your hands under the tap and trying to smooth your hair to make it look like you've at least had a few hours of sleep. The owner of the footsteps pad into the kitchen, to tired to look where they're going, never mind what state you're in. For that, you're grateful. "Good morning sweetheart." you smile as the small, blonde haired child scrambles up onto their kitchen seat.

"'morning mama." the child yawns, reaching for her breakfast and causing you to smile. Alia Becker is ten years and seven months old and a true mummy's girl. She's been the joy of your life for the past ten years and probably your best friend. "Where's dada?" she asks, seeming a little more bright eyed now that she's eating.

"He had to go to work early, remember?" Alia frowns for a few seconds before nodding, her brown eyes wide and sparkling. You turn your back to her to continue the washing up, taking several deep breaths in attempt to keep up the act you've shown every moment for the last thirteen years.

You've seen Megan grow up before your eyes, watched her change, mature and become more and more independent. You've seen her break away from you and start to carve her own life, leaving you and the memory the dead brother she can't remember behind, even at the age of fourteen. Alia's changing now too. She's no longer the little child that always has to hold your hand and not do everything that you do. She's getting more involved with her school friends and her spending a little more time each day in her room. Although you're happy that they're showing independence and not hanging around with their ill mother, you feel more and more lonely each day. You haven't worked in eleven years after giving up on all hope that Ben survived and would be coming back. Each day at the ARC was a slap in the face and a wakening call to face reality. Your decision to resign was supported by everyone, but you could count on one hand the amount of times you've seen any of the team in the last six months.

Becker's also becoming more and more withdrawn. He's sits a little longer in his car each night, gets up a little earlier each morning. There's one less kiss each day, one less hug, one less endearment. And you don't blame him. You've withdrawn inside yourself, speaking very little to very few people. You saw yourself almost destroy Becker when you were diagnosed with depression, watch him struggle to stay with you, to love you. Every day is a milestone – he's still there. Still living with you and still married to you. Even if it's only due to Megan and Alia. There's only been one chance for another child to be born into your life and Alia seized it. She seemed to help the depression to clear faster, restore some life to you, but you're still aware of how much of a burden you are to people.

A hand on your shoulder causes you to jump,splashing water over the side. A dish cloth appears in your vision and you look up to see Megan stood beside you. He brown hair has been permanently died black, you had no say in it, and her fringe always covering her right eye. You take the cloth from her with a smile, moping up the lukewarm water. "C'mon Alia." Megan says, turning from you and taking her sister's hand. "It's time to go."

"Bye mama!" Alia calls with a wave.

"Bye sweetheart." you wave back and force a smile. "Bye Megan!"

"Bye mum." Is Megan's curt reply. The banging of the door closing signals the start of another lonely day.

Megan hasn't always been so curt and almost rude. It just happened two years ago. It started with small things; slamming doors, arguing with Becker, arguing with you, snapping at Alia, loud music and then it began to escalate. She never turned to drugs or smoking, but she isolated herself. You think it has something to do with constantly being seen as 'the girl who lost her twin'.

You drain the water from the sink, heading upstairs to make Alia's bed. On the way you pass Megan's room, a white sheet of card with 'Keep Out' scrawled across it in red and black. It's a typical teenager thing, but it still upsets you.

Once you've cleaned the house, like you do every morning, you head back to the kitchen. As you're cleaning up you knock the knife stand over, sending the knives sliding across the kitchen floor. You swear, fishing around under the cooker for the carving knife. The blade glints dangerously as you retrieve it and you shudder. You've never felt the need to slice your skin with anything, knowing that if you do, you'll loose everything and everyone. You'd never dream of taking your own life either. That thought always sparks anger within you and you head into the living room to calm down. The red light of the telly is still blinking from where Becker would've watched it earlier that morning whilst he made his breakfast.

You hear the newspaper come through the front door and you slowly get up to fetch it. You scan it, not seeing anything interesting and toss it down on the kitchen table. You briefly wonder if Becker will be home for lunch or if he'll just stay at the ARC again. Probably the latter.

You sit around the house for an hour before getting to your feet and heading to your bedroom. You crouch on the floor and fish around under the bed for the ARC personnel files, the ones Becker doesn't think you know about.

That fateful day thirteen years ago and the ARC lost 128 members of staff. 28 were lab techs, 32 were office workers, 10 were the medical team and 58 were the soldiers. 27 more workers were injured, none of which returned to work. The team didn't escape without harm though either. After April left the building all but collapsed. Lester had suffered a laceration on his left sigh nearly caused him to bleed to death. He also had mild concussion and had to take five weeks off work. It didn't go down too well.

Matt had taken a heavy blow to the head, loosing a large amount of blood and causing temporary paralysis from the waist down. He'd been off work for three months.

Becker had suffered a laceration to the chest and moderate blood loss whilst trying to get you to leave the building. He'd also damaged tendons in his right leg that left him with a permanent, but small, limp. He'd been confined to home for seven weeks.

Connor had suffered badly cut face and a broken wrist. He was allowed into work but wasn't allowed out in the field for six weeks. He had a pale scar running along his hairline.

Abby had suffered a fractured collar bone and a shattered left elbow. She'd taken thirteen weeks off from work.

Jess had come away with the least injuries – mild concussion and a small cut to the forehead.

You'd suffered a fractured shin and a sprained wrist. Miraculously, Megan hadn't been hurt at all.

But those files don't interest you as you've all but memorised them. It's the newer, undamaged files that do. Their the new key members of staff that you've never met. They include seventeen new soldiers (five core) and a PR rep. (Jenny decided to not go back to work.)

The first soldier drafted into the security team was Second Lieutenant Piper Kearns. She's one of the only female soldiers to last over five months. She's a long range sniper and had been in service for five years when she joined. She'd been 23 at the time. She'd done one tour in Iraq and two and a half in Afghanistan. Her third tour had been cut short when she'd been drafted into the ARC.

The second soldier was Corporal R Hutchings. A 27 year old explosive expert with six years of SAS service under his belt. He'd done two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan.

The third soldier, and Robinson's reported favourite, is Lance Corporal Russel Victor. He's reported to be a good shot, sneaks around and has a tendency to blow things up. At the age of 29 he has five years of service under his belt and Six tours to Afghanistan and Iraq. He's also Russian and a hit with the ladies.

The fourth folder is slightly thicker and has Lance Corporal Charlie Knight stamped on the front. Knight was recently promoted when he joined the ARC team. He's also served five years but is only 24. He spent three years on three tours in Afghanistan and two years in a secret government operation which was how he got noticed.

Next to be recruited was Second Lieutenant Juliet Richardson, commonly known as Jet. As it's so professionally put in her file, 'S.L Richardson has a talent of making things go ''Boom'''. She also has a tendency to beat other men up. She's an A Class sniper, is fluent in French, Russian, Italian, Greek, Spanish, German, Polish and Flemish. She is also able to swear in said languages. She's 24 years old and joined the army eight years ago when she ran away from home at the age of sixteen. She's completed two tours in Afghanistan, one in Iraq with the Air Force and three years in a top secret project in Russia. Lester's reason for hiring her appeared to be that there is 'Less Paperwork' involved.

Then there's the new PR. You met her once when she came to pick Becker up after the car wouldn't start and they needed to get to an alert. The woman was dressed way too impractically in five inch heels, a short, tight black mini-skirt and a shirt that delved so deeply between her breasts you could see her bra. Her face had been so pale she's looked like death, her lips had been rose red, her eyes were decorated in two cm thick black eye-liner and several layers of mascara. Her hair was dyed bleach blonde as in cascaded down her back in loose ringlets. Despite everything she seemed rather pretty if you imagined her with less make-up. She'd introduced herself as Rosanna Foster and when Becker had appeared, you instantly hated her. She'd looked at you with pity before greeting Becker with a warm smile and a friendly hug before gripping his arm with a small, manicured hand and leading him down the front steps. Her file made your blood boil.

You sit on the bed flicking through files until you hear Megan and Alia come home from school. Them you slide the files back under the Ben and head back downstairs. You head into the kitchen, sweeping Alia up and giving her a bear hug. "Hey sweetie. How was school?"

"Fun! We had maths!" you laugh. Alia may only be ten but she's much smarter than you.

"And you, Meg?"

"It was cool." Megan shrugs, grabbing an apple from he bowl on the counter. "Later." she turns on her heel, taking the stairs two at a time.

"You have anything to put on the fridge today?" you ask Alia, bending to pick her back-pack from the floor. The fridge door is coated in sheets of paper with drawings, good reports, stickers, certificates and photos. Alia shakes her head, wriggling from your hip to go and watch TV whilst you set about making dinner. It's the same routine everyday for you; get up, make breakfast, get the kids out of the house on time, watch telly, make lunch, read files, greet kids, make dinner, get kids into bed, read a book, go to bed. The only difference during the weekends and school holidays is getting the kids out of the house on time and reading the files.

You busy yourself with making the dinner, blocking out the tunes of the 'Disney Channel' coming from the living room and the heavy bass beat of Megan's music from upstairs. This is your normal end to the each day and if you're lucky, you might get to see Becker tonight. If you're really lucky then one of the team may drop their offspring round to see one of your two.

Since you've left the ARC, six children have been born to the group. Suzie and Taylor Anderson are fraternal twins and both eleven years old. Suzie is the spitting image of her father and Taylor's a girl-girl. They both have Matt wrapped round their little fingers. The two and Morgan Quinn are all in the same class at school and drive their teachers crazy. After Taylor comes Alia. Then Molly Temple, aged eight, and James Temple, aged six. James was named after Lester when he saved Abby's life a few weeks before the birth.

Matt and Jess also got married fourteen months after the incident. You went to their wedding but sat at the back. Becker and Megan had sat at the front with the others. You hadn't attended the reception afterwards.

**Very much a filler as I just thought I'd let everyone know what's going on with you in this chapter. The next chapter is going to involve anomalies and dinosaurs. (Even if you're no longer employed by the ARC!)**


	3. Deep End

**Sorry about the lag guys; life's a little hectic at the moment!**

You're making dinner when you hear the muffled screams of your next door neighbour and you freeze. Ms Parkinsons lives alone and never has anyone round to visit. She screams again and Megan's music stops playing and Alia turns the telly off. A second later and they're stood infront of you in the kitchen. "Do you think there's an anomaly?" Megan asks excitedly. "Oh, it would be so _cool_ if there was!" you don't point out that Ms Parkinsons could be lying dead next door.

"Megan, take your sister across to Julies house and wait there until I come and get you." you order, staring her down until she nods. Julie lived opposite you and is now the closest thing you have to a friend. You watch Megan and Alia across the road and into the house before picking up the phone and dialling next door.

There's no answer.

Then you dial Becker's mobile, intending on informing him that there's nothing from next door. As the phone begins to ring the silence turns deadly. Like the calm before a storm.

Sure enough there's the sound of smashing brick and cracking plaster comes from upstairs. You silently set the phone on the table and head to the bottom of the stairs. You slowly walk up the stairs, gripping the banister tightly as though it will make you lighter. You skip the sixth and eight steps, the creaky ones, and slowly reach the top.

At the top of the stairs you find a pile of rubble and pale red paint. You swallow nervously and slowly head towards your bedroom. You get halfway before you hear a soft growl and padding footsteps behind you. You don't pause to look just run towards the nearest room and slam the door behind you. You lock it shuffle back across the floor until your back hits the wall. You glance up and find yourself sitting in Megan and Ben's old room. The door shudders as something slams into it and you pull your knees up against your chest. You curse your stupidity for leaving the phone on the table but feel slightly relieved when you realise that you never actually hung up the phone so there's still a chance Becker would've answered and realised that something is wrong. That and hopefully Megan will mention something.

Your original plan had been to get to the bedroom and retrieve the EMD Becker has under the bed with the files. The one that you supposedly don't know about. Dear Lord he's going to be mad!

The thumping on the door continues and you scan the room for something to use as a weapon. A chair perhaps.

The noise on the other side of the door stops and a few seconds later the door handle turns and the door opens. You cringe, knowing that it's Becker and you get to your feet, crossing your arms. You take a deep breath as the door swings open and a rather pissed off looking Becker storms in. "This isn't what you think!" you defend yourself but Becker overpowers you.

"It's a bloody dinosaur! A God damned dinosaur and you send our kids to safety whilst you cower here! What the hell were you thinking?"

"I said it's not what you think!" you yell back, painfully aware that everyone can hear. "The creature came through so I decided to try and be of some use!"

"By cowering here?"

"No! That wasn't the plan! I was headed for that EMD you so secretly keep under the bed when the creature heard me! You _know_ I don't come in here!"

"Oh, so you thought that _now _would be a good time to be brave! Did you call me up to gloat?"

"I called you to warn you that our next door neighbour was dead!"

"Funnily enough, we'd figured it out! People always die on this job but ever since Ben was killed you don't care, do you! It's always about you and how you're grieving for your little boy! What about me and Megan and everyone else who loved him?"

"This isn't even about that!" you're fully screaming now and resisting the urge to stamp your foot. "Why must everything be about that! God knows I'm trying and you just have to bring it up again!" you bite your lip to prevent yourself from going any further and push past a fuming looking Becker and storm down the stairs, wrenching open the front door and making two soldiers jump as you slam it behind you. You stalk down the path towards a bored looking Rosanna who had evidently heard everything. You grab the sheets from her hand and sign them without reading them.

Your blood is still pounding in your ears and your hands are still shaking and before you actually realise what you're doing, your walking down the road and away from the house. It's not unusual for you and Beck to fight and it's slowly escalating, but not enough to worry you yet. You never apologise to him and he never apologizes to you. Simple.

You walk for about an hour until you start to get cold and a few drops of rain begin to fall. You then duck into a near by café, having no intention of going home yet.

* X *

Alex watched from the relative safety of a tree as his mother lured a Bagaraatan out into the open using a piece of raw meat. An anomaly glistened behind her and the dinosaur cautiously glanced at it. The only thing separating Alex's mother and the Dinosaur was a thick stick. It wouldn't be much use in a fight.

Seeming to sense the waning patience of the dinosaur Alex's mother tossed the meat through the anomaly behind her and dived out of the way to allow the Bagaraatan access. Sure enough the dinosaur charged through and as soon as its tail had disappeared, his mother closed the anomaly. Alex jumped from the tree, landing expertly and silently. "What was that for?" he asked curiously.

"Just cracking the ice a little more dear." his mother smiled, ruffling his hair. "Now come on. We need to find you something to eat if you're going to keep up your strength." Alex smiled, leaning against his mother but not letting his guard down completely. He rested his right hand on the pistol held in his belt, eyes scanning the forest constantly. "And I think it's time to learn a little more about what you've got to do." Alex instantly perked up. His mother never liked to talk about what he was going to do. She said it put ideas into his head.

A few hours later and the two found themselves sat in a roomy cave but with a small opening. Perfect for them but not so good for predators to get it. They sat either side of a fire, finishing off the last of the small dinosaur they'd eaten. "You understand that when we return to the future we will have to kill some people because of something they did?"

"Yes." Alex nodded obediently. "A husband and wife."

"Yes. I'll point them out to you nearer the time. But they're connected to the anomalies. The husband protects people from the dinosaurs. He's in-charge of at least two hundred men. He's never alone and he's SAS meaning that he's pretty good. But not perfect. Now his wife is mentally ill. Some bad thing happened in the past. I'm a little sketchy on the details. Either way they fight a lot and they've managed to upset quite a few people without realising it."

"So, I'll be doing these people a favour?" Alex asked with a frown and his mother nodded. "If that's the case, why hasn't anyone else tried to kill them?"

"Many people have, but they have a tendency to end up dead." his mother smiled. "I'll tell you more about those people when the time arrives. The one thing they'll use to stop you is their two daughters. One will be about the same age as you, the other a few years younger. They wont be a problem so you can leave them alive if you want."

"Wont that provoke revenge?"

"No. The eldest daughter is too sour and doesn't really care much for her parents and the youngest is too timid. They wont be a problem." Alex's mother smiled, leaning back on her elbows. "Now. You'll need to get into the building where they work."

"If the wife is mentally ill then surely she'll be at home."

"I'll sort that out. Don't you worry. Now, take a look at these." his mother smiled, handing him a sheet of paper. "These are the new and not-so-improved security plans for the building." The mother and son spent the rest of the evening studying the plans and devising ways to get into the building.


	4. Downhill

**Okay I am SO sorry about the who 'lack of updating thing' but I've had WAY too much on my plate; exams, family, friends, more exams, fund-raising, recent obsession with Tumblr, redevelopment, other fics, yet _more _exams (specifically maths), fan girl obsessions with rather fit people (Namely Becker and Thor...) a final set of exams, _severe _writers block and my brain generally just shutting down. **

**If I get five reviews I'll update before midday (12:00 GMT)**

You sit in the café until it's dark and the street lights flick on outside. You're staring out of the window and don't notice that someone's sat opposite you until they place a cup of hot coffee in your hands. You turn and find Abby sitting opposite you. "That bad huh?" she smiles and you turn your head back to the window, leaning against it. You nod. "Everyone heard the argument but for what it's worth, I believe you. We all know Becker keeps an EMD under the bed." She pauses before continuing. "Becker's gotten worse too you know. He just keeps it all locked up inside and vents it at work. The amount of dead dinosaurs have increased ten fold. But we've notice that you're getting better. I mean, going for the EMD today proved it."

You smirk, rolling your eyes. "Will you please explain that to my pig-headed husband?"

"Matt and Connor are trying to now. Megan and Alia are staying with me and Con tonight so that Becker can cool down."

"I'm not going back." you say firmly and Abby smiles sadly.

"I know. Maybe tomorrow."

"No, Abby." you straighten up, staring her straight in the eye. "I'm not going back. Ever. If Becker can't treat me like a normal human being and see that I _am _trying, then I don't want to know. I don't care if it's for the kids' sake or not, I will _not _stay there unless he sorts his attitude out. He's the one that starts the arguments anyway." you can't help but feel a little childish at the last sentence but you brush it off.

"Maybe you should get away for a while. A week or so. Leave all of this behind you."

"Uh uh. Not happening." you shake your head.

"Then at least spend the night with Megan and Alia at mine." you nod, rising to your feet. And laving a tip on the table. You know that you'll end up sleeping on the sofa at Abby's flat but that's better than sharing a bed with a husband that wants to kill you.

X

"How long until we get there?" Alex moaned, ducking his head under the water of a shallow, dinosaur free, stream.

"Two weeks." his mother snapped back before softening her voice. "Two weeks and then I can get you home and all of this will be behind us.

"Two weeks isn't long enough. I want to go _now_!"

"Short tempered just like your father." his mother smirked and Alex clenched his fists in attempt to stop himself rising to the bait. "You're not ready yet. You need to perfect your aim if you're going to have any chance at all of killing these people."

"If I kill them though, wont we be forced away again?"

"Yes, but there are always times further on from where we need to go." the frown that had been creasing Alex's brow deepened as he smoothed his hair back. It really needed a cut.

"Couldn't we just go there now?"

"We could, but don't you want revenge?" Alex bit his lip and turned from his mother. He hated it when she played the 'revenge' card. He couldn't remember anything about his father or living in the time he was meant to be in now. Occasionally he thought he could hear his father's voice in his head gently chiding him for doing something wrong, but not raising his voice. But the memory was fuzzy and more than likely something he'd conjured out of his imagination in attempt to relate to another male. Alex snapped back to reality when he realised his mother was leaving without him. It confused him that she and he looked nothing alike. Even their hair were different shades of brown. His was dark, almost black and hers was light. She had blue eyes and he had brown. He was also much taller than her, even at his young age.

"Wait for me!"

X

You're right. You have to sleep on the couch with Megan and Alia. Alia doesn't seem to mind and she views the whole thing as an adventure. Megan just wants to get some sleep for school tomorrow. As the clock passes half three in the morning the two girls are sleeping peacefully either side of you and you're laying awake on your back. You've been staring at the same white bit of ceiling for three hours and, finally getting bored enough to move, you disentangle yourself from your youngest daughter and pad from the living room to the balcony at the end of the hall.

Abby and Connor's shared flat is nice and spacious with two rooms. It's on the seventh floor of a block of ten flats and provides a beautiful view over the city. Molly and James have their separate rooms either side of the corridor behind you. Thinking about James reminds you that Lester, now sixty, will only be working for another few years. He's nearly lost his life six times now and you know that he'll already have his replacement planned. You also know that Lester's the only reason Becker comes home at night. When Lester goes and there's no one to order Becker out the door then you're really screwed.

You stay on the balcony until six when the door to the master bedroom cracks open and Connor steps out. "'morning." he yawns and you smile, stepping back into the flat. "You want coffee or summin'?" he asks, rubbing his eyes like you've seen Alia do every morning.

"I'll get it." you offer, heading towards the kitchen. Passing through the living room you see that Megan's already up and changed, sitting on the sofa bed with Alia under her arm. Megan doesn't lift her head from her book and you don't disturb her. You set the kettle on and set about making breakfast. Abby and Connor appear at seven, dressed and ready for work. They smile and a few seconds later they're joined by Molly and James. By this time Alia's up and Moll runs to her, hugging her and not letting go.

"Are those pancakes?" Connor asks, sniffing the air and moving towards the table. You smile and James runs towards the table yelling 'Pancakes!' over and over. Alia and Molly move towards the table and you spot Megan looking longingly at the table. Knowing the Megan wont eat them otherwise, you slip and few pancakes onto a separate plate, holding them out to Megan. Megan smiles and takes the plate back to the sofa bed. "We'll take Megan and Alia to school on our way to work." Connor offers and you nod before frowning. "How are you going to get them all in the car?"

"I'm pooling with Becker." Abby says, nibbling a pancake. "And so are you."


	5. Turning Tables

**Sorry for the wait people, but my laptop's died from over use so I'm using my parent's; It's got a space for coal. No kidding. **

**I'm thinking of doing anther story like this series, except as a 'Nick Stokes and You' storyline. (I'm developing a bit of a liking for him.) Do people think it would be a good idea? There's a poll on my profile.**

Connor loads the kids into the car half an hour later and you and Abby wait for Becker for another fifteen minutes. "Why are you making me do this?" you sound like a whiny child but you don't care. You don't want to go back to that house just yet and you don't want to be stuck in the car with Becker, even if Abby's there too. "I'm never going to forgive you for it."

"Relax." Abby laughs, triple checking her kit. "Becker wont take a swipe at you if he knows I'm nearby."

"I wouldn't bet on it." you mutter and Abby laughs, glancing out of the window then starting for the door.

"The hole in your house has been repaired so we're going to drop you home."

"What? So I can be a good little housewife and clean up?" you snap harshly, following Abby down the hall. You feel bad but don't apologise, your temper darkening as you step into the lift. Your mood continues to darken as the lift counts down the floors and it turns pitch black when you step out into the street. It's a cold, wet day but there's no rain falling at the moment. You're just glad that the dinosaur didn't break through the roof. You follow Abby down the road until the pick-up comes into view, a seriously pissed Becker behind the wheel. "Oh God. Oh God oh God oh God." you mutter, feeling as though your pockets are suddenly filled with lead.

"C'mon. You've faced Helen and dinosaurs and Chrissie, you can sure as hell face your husband." Abby practically drags you along the pavement to the car and you decide to take the back seats, rather than riding shotgun. You still value your life after all. "Anything popped up at work yet?" Abby somehow manages to sound upbeat as you consider throwing yourself from the car, but the automated locks click shut before you can act upon the thought.

"No." Becker's reply is blunt and he's pulling away from the curb before you've sorted your seat belt. He really is in a hurry to ditch you. You notice that his hands are clamped too tightly round the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white. You want nothing more than to lean over and take his hands in yours and pull the tension from the muscles, but you've haven't done that in twelve years and you know the move wont be appreciated.

The ride to your house is quiet and when you arrive Becker leaves the car in the middle of the road, tossing his key over his shoulder. You mumble a thanks and head towards the door. You try not to notice that Becker doesn't leave until you're inside and you've shut the door, putting it down to the fact that he doesn't want you doing another runner. You tuck the key into the back pocket of your jeans, heading into the kitchen to make another hot drink.

You decide to clean the house before the kids get back and gather the black bags from the garage, heading up the stairs and cleaning as you go. The clean-up team seem to have done most of the heavy lifting before hand and have placed a blue tarp over the hole between your house and the adjoining one belonging to your now dead neighbour. You turn from the tarp and head towards the door of the room you cowered in. Some small, subconscious part of your brain is telling you to make sure everything's back in order. You know you moved the chair and you now have the pressing urge to put it back in its right place. Opening the door you stand in the threshold, scanning the room for the chair. You frown when you see that it's back in the place where it usually is. You come to the conclusion that Becker must have put it back and you close the door without entering the room. You head towards the bedroom, eager to check if Becker trusts you enough to leave the EMD in the same spot under the bed. Running your hand over the boxes you retrieve the EMD, a note attached to it.

_Fire this and you're in so much trouble. _

You don't need to be smart that Becker wrote this in a foul mood. The fact that the letters have nearly gone through the page is enough. You set the EMD back, although Becker will undoubtedly know you've moved it, and head back downstairs.

X

Alex skimmed another stone across the lake from his perch on the tree. There was a rope attached to the thick branch next to him, the end of it disappearing through an anomaly a few feet away. He sighed, tapped his fingers against the branch. He tightened his legs and fell back, spending the next few minutes hanging upside down on the branch until his mother reappeared through the anomaly. "Alex, what on Earth are you doing?" she demanded, closing the anomaly and stuffing the rope into her backpack.

"Living." Alex scrambled back into a sitting position before scrambling down the branch. "What were you looking for?"

"I wasn't looking for anything. I was checking on something." Alex couldn't see the difference. In his eyes, if you were checking on something then you were looking for something that had gone wrong, or hopefully right. Therefore his mother was looking for something and she wasn't wrong. But he didn't mention this to his already touchy mother. Instead he followed her down a scarcely used trail to their camp for the night, counting down the days until he'd be back in what he considered the 'real world'.

X

By the time Alia and Megan come home, the house is spotless. Dinner's on the table and Megan seems surprised. "Wow. Is that casserole?" you smile and pick Alia up, setting her school bag on the counter.

"Yeah. I know it's been a while since I cooked but it's been even longer since we've all been a family." you set Alia in her seat, setting the cutlery on the table.

"Is this an apology for the bust up between you and dad last night? 'Cause I'll happily take money." Megan states, grabbing the fork and starting to eat. You can tell by her posture that she's not serious.

"Can I get money too?" Alia asks, looking up from her meal and you laugh, ruffling her hair.

"No one's getting money sweetie." you sit at your seat and no sooner have you taken the first bite, Becker comes home. You steel yourself before raising your voice. It seems like three life-times ago when you would go to the door to meet him. "There's dinner on the table!" you call with an attempted smile as Becker enters the kitchen, dumping his jacket on the counter. "And that goes away. Now. I've just finished cleaning up."

"I'll move it later. And I'm not hungry." Becker doesn't look at you and your grip tightens around your fork and you grit your teeth. You're trying to be more like the old you but the bastard isn't having it. He seems content to want you to change but no actually accept it. Your squash your anger but it turns out that Megan can't. Her chair scrapes on the floor and she jumped to her feet, turning to glare at her father.

"Damn it, dad!" Becker tenses and turns back to his daughter with steely eyes. "You're ungrateful and unsocial and no more useful that a hammer without a head!" your raise your eyebrows at your daughter and watch as Becker becomes more and more tense. "You never do anything wrong, do you? It's always _mum's _fault!"

"Megan..." you warn, pulling Alia onto your lap as she starts to get uncomfortable, drumming her fingers on the table-top. "Let it drop and go back to your dinner..."

"No, mum! I wont let it drop! You've been in a shitty mood for as long as I remember and it's because of him!" Alia wriggles from your lap and you allow her to run into the living room, wishing you could follow her. "The only reason you're still with this useless pile crap is because of me and Alia. If it weren't for us then you'd be rid of _him _and with someone a whole lot better."

"I would not be with anyone else, Megan. And this is appropriate." you sigh, leaning your elbows on the table and running your hands over your face. Megan's never stuck up before and you make a mental not to both thank and reprimand Abby for having a word with her behind your back.

"Neither is his attitude towards you!" you aren't sure what made the outraged fourteen year old teenage girl infront of you snap, Abby would've told her to be more lenient towards you but nothing else, but you know that it's going to better to let her get out all her steam than to stop her. "He treats you like dirt and brushes off everything you do when everyone can see your trying. Even _James. _He's six freaking years old! And mum, you could pull anyone you want." Megan turns back to Becker who's looking rather unimpressed. "I'm going to say this because my mother wont. Move your jacket the hell off the side and then either start acting like a father and a husband or clear out. But if you leave, then you don't come back. Ever."

"This isn't for you to decide, Megan." Becker's tone is icy and flat and you decide now's a good time to step in and save your daughter from being skinned alive.

"Then I'll say the same thing." you don't get up or lift your head from your hands. "This has gone on way to long, Hilary. Clean up or pack up. Your choice. Meg, can you go see to your sister please? This could get nasty." Megan nods, taking two plates into a living room and you remain silent until your hear the telly turn on and the volume turn up. "Chose. Now. I want to have a decent evening."

"So now your turning my own daughter against me?" Becker laughs harshly and you look up with a sigh.

"No. You did that yourself. She loves you, despite everything and Alia's to young too understand for a few more years. You can't blame Megan for bringing this up because it's been pending since her fourth birthday."

"Pending? This isn't a game." Becker spits and you get to your feet, heading towards the counter and throwing his jacket at him.

"No. Pending as in the divorce papers that I filed for six weeks ago." Becker's eyes widen and his jaw drops. "You have another six weeks before those papers are filed and I kick you from my house."

"You can't do that."

"I can and I will. Jess, Abby and Sarah will know by tomorrow morning and Lester will know by noon. If the divorce goes through, then I will fight tooth and nail for full custody. You can't help me, Hilary. There's no way you can help your kids." you turn and Becker opens his mouth to argue. His impending argument triggers something you should've done twelve years ago. You slap him. It's hard enough to hurt your hand and you know there will be a bruise there for several days. "That's the only time I have ever and will ever lay a finger on you in violence." you head from the room, grabbing your plate as you go.

**Remember; Vote and Review people! Virtual Becker punching bag for those who vote, and a virtual 'happy' Becker for those who review! If I could clone the real thing, I would. Believe me...**


	6. End of the Line

The arrow went wide, missing the slice of dead meat with crude circles drawn onto the flesh by three feet. "You missed!" the cry of Alex's mother was shrill and painful. Anything which may have been stalking them was probably running for its life. "You're _ten feet away_!"

"I'm sorry, mother." Alex lowered his arm, the make-shift bow and arrow still in his grip.

"Sorry? Sorry wont end this! Sorry wont relieve us! Sorry wont kill!"

"I know, mother." Alex bent to pick up the next 'arrow', fastening it to the string and drawing it back. "But perseverance will."

This time, the arrow the bullseye.

X

"Mama, where's Dada?" Alia asks the next morning. Great question, but there's no suitable answer for a ten year old.

"He's with Uncle Matt." That's not a lie. You got a phone call from a curious Matt who was wondering why Becker had turned up on his doorstep with a bruised cheek and a shitty attitude.

"When's he coming home?"

"I don't know, honey." A partial lie. Matt reported that he doesn't know if Becker's going to be either coming home or going to work. This is a cargo train with no breaks going downhill. You know when it will de-rail. "You'll be late if you don't hurry. Aunt Jessie's outside." it's Saturday and Jess, Abby and Connor have volunteered to take all eight kids to the park and then to Hamleys. You envy the kids but not Abby and Jess. Megan's been hinting about meeting up with her most recent but longest standing boyfriend. You don't know his name, just that they've been dating for three months and you're yet to meet him. A car horn outside signals the arrival of the people-mover and Megan thunders down the stairs.

"Mum, can I ditch the group at Hamleys and go meet Jeremy? My boyfriend?" she adds at your blank expression. Well, that solves the nameless boyfriend problem.

"Just be back by eleven and clear it with Abby first." You mentioned Abby as Jess and Connor don't have the heart to say no to anyone. Megan waves an agreement, grabbing Alia's hand and pulling her from the house. You move into the living room to wave goodbye before grabbing your keys and heading out of the house.

Wondering aimlessly around the house isn't really something you want to be doing. Instead, you've decided to take the two hour car ride down to Chepstow, the barracks where Rob is based. He knows you're coming and he knows Becker isn't, but he doesn't know why. You arrive shortly after ten to find Rob waiting at the gates for you. "Hey there!" he grins, waving to the guards to allow you in. "Long time no see!" he pulls you from the car and into a bear hug, not dwelling on the reason you haven't spoken to him in so long. "What can I do for you?" It's been years since you've seen Rob and you feel terrible. You and him were best friends, now he's your brother-in-law and you haven't spoken to him in seven years. That being said, he still looks the same, if not a little bit more refreshed. He has faint scars from tours in Iraq and Afghanistan but nothing to destroy his looks.

"Perhaps not in the middle of the road, okay?" you laugh and Rob grins his famous smile and you're suddenly unaware that it's 2027 and your life is falling to pieces around you.

"Good plan." he directs you to the car park for the barracks, telling you that he'll be along in a minute. You locate the correct room and push the open the door whilst making a note to chastise Rob for not locking the it. You survey the small area with a feeling of claustrophobia. The room you're in serves as the living room. There's a small telly and sofa-bed with a four pictures on the wall. The first is you and him on your first day of senior school. The second is you an him on your last day, Becker stood behind you. The third is of you and the family at Becker's 'graduation' and the forth is of him and a woman you don't recognise. The standard bookcase is filled with old army texts and war stories and what may be a diary. To your right is a door that leads to the small room. There's a double bed, a sink and a mirror hanging over the chest of draws. Both the draws and night stands look to be standard issue. Leading off that is a bathroom big enough for a toilet, shower and second sink. You jump away from the door as Rob shoulders it open. "Don't stand behind the door, woman!" the man snaps with a grin, gesturing for you to sit on the sofa. "I'd offer you a cuppa, but I'm lacking a kettle at the moment."

"Maybe it's because you leave your door unlocked."

"Meh." Rob replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "I know who would've nicked it anyway. So, what brings you to this side of Wales?"

"We're technically in England." you point out with a grin, earning an eye roll from your best friend and brother-in-law. Or rather, soon to be ex-brother-in-law. You flinch at the notion and Rob leans forwards in concern.

"What's Hilary done?" you bite your lip, not quite sure if it _is _Becker's fault and how you're meant to start. "Si..."

"We're getting a divorce." you blurt, clamping your hand over your mouth as soon as the words have passed your lips.

"You wha'?" Rob's jaw drops and his eyes widen. "Tell me ya kiddin'. We haven't spoken in seven years and _this_ is your bombshell? I was hoping you were pregnant or summin' like that!" you internally sigh as Rob, in shock, reverts back to his old way of speaking. Something he'd picked up from one of his uncles.

"Hilary and I are getting divorced."

"Why? I mean, I know he's an ass and all, but why now? After so long?"

"'Cause he's an ass." You shrug. "It's getting to the stage where we both want to kill each other." you pause before diving headlong into what happened with the creature. After Rob saved you the day the twins were born and Ben's death he was allowed to know a little about the ARC. Not the full extent, like the dinosaurs and the anomalies, only that you worked with wild, often deadly, animals. When you've finished to the events of last night Rob's clearly shocked.

"I wasn't keen on the two of ya hooking up in the first place, but the idea of a divorce? Nuh huh. Not good. And the girls? What they make of it?"

"They don't know." another shrug. "Megan will figure it out by the end of the day, Alia will have to be told."

"Who's gonna do that?"

"Pass." you sigh, leaning back against the sofa and catching sight of a lilac hairbrush. "I didn't know lilac was your colour." you smirk at Rob before scanning the room and noticing feminine touches. For example, the room is cleaner than Rob's usual, there's an ever so faint smell of perfume, a gold bangle on the other arm of the sofa, two towels trying on the radiator, a female's set of size seven army boots by the door and the photo. "You've got a girlfriend." you grin, sitting up as Rob blushes.

"Yeah, well, it's not been going long." he mumbles.

"Not going long? Rob, her stuffs all over this place! The fact her shoes and hairbrush are here suggests that she _lives _here!" Rob flushes a dark red and mutters something incoherent. It couldn't have been better timed as the door swings open to reveal a slender, slightly startled, woman. She looks like the reincarnation of Aphrodite – pale skin framed by long, wavy copper hair, a gentle smile, brown eyes and rosy lips. She also looks a little worried to see you.

"Amy!" Rob jumps to his feet, striding over to her and pulling her inside. "Amy, this is Si Becker, my best friend and current sister-in-law. Si, this is Amy Charles, my girlfriend."

"It's lovely to meet you." you say with a smile, extending your hand as you rise to your feet.

"And you." she looks slightly worn out and you guess that she's been on patrol, but she shakes your hand anyway.

"If you'll excuse me, I need to freshen up." her voice is timid as she grabs a towel and locks herself in the bathroom. You turn to Rob with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll say it 'cause Becker and Mikey aren't here; How the hell did you pull that?"

"Oh, shut up." Rob grins, sidestepping a kick. "We're in the same unit. I'm the only one who doesn't perv on her."

"How long?"

"Year and a bit?" Rob says sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Rob!" you laugh, cuffing him across the back of the head.

"What? I'd have told you but things were a little... tight." you shake your head and lift your eyes to the ceiling.

"You can tell Becker. I'm not exactly on speaking terms with him." you smile at your friend. "I have to go or I'll be late back. Bring Amy up to visit soon. Alia will love her." Rob grins in agreement and draws you into a tight hug.

"It was good to see you again."

"Yeah. Seven years is _way _too long. Seriously. You're coming up next half term or the kids and I are camping in here."

"We'll be there!" Rob laughs as you head for the door.

X

"Better." Alex's mother nods as Alex pulls the arrows from the mangled piece of meat. "One more year and you'll be ready."

"That long?"

"Yes. Now cook that piece of crap whilst I look for shelter."

X

Megan and Alia aren't home when you get back, but Becker's waiting outside in his car. You ignore him as you step into the house, leaving the door open for him to follow if he chooses. He does choose so, but he doesn't say anything. For ten minutes he just watches you walk around the house.

"What do you _want _from me?" you sigh in exasperation, throwing your hands in the air and finally turning to face him.

"My bloody wife back!" Becker yells back, not quite as controlled as you are. You don't blame him.

"Well I'm so sorry if she _died _with _Ben_!" you hate using Ben in an argument but he's never mentioned otherwise, something you hate Becker for. You don't know why you've brought him up now, but you don't know why anything is happening.

"Oh, for _fucks sake! _Not everything has to revolve around him!"

"I'm not saying it does! I'm saying that when one of the people you love _dies _then a part of you dies too!"

"So if I died you'd change then?" Becker's slowly turning red in the face and words are slipping from your mouth faster than you can control them.

"No!"

"_Exactly!_"

"You don't share half of my genes!"

"So that's it? It comes down to _DNA?_"

"That and I actually loved Ben!" you clamp your hands over your mouth as you realise what you've said. Becker notices it too and he looks even angrier than he did before. For the first time in a long time you're scared that he's actually going to hit you.

"Very well." he says, suddenly calm. "I guess I was holding onto false hope."

"Oh, God. Hilary, I didn't mean it!" you can feel the tears starting to well up as you speak from behind you hand.

"Really? You sure have me fooled." Becker slowly starts to gather his stuff. "I'll file for the divorce on my way to work. I'll locate a lawyer for you too." he moves upstairs and you chase after him, realising exactly what you've done.

"Becker, no! I didn't mean it." you plead but he ignores you.

"You can keep the EMD, I'll tell Lester it's to keep Megan and Alia safe. Matt or someone will be around to pick up the rest of my things at a later date."

"Becker, don't." you grab his arm in attempt to make him stay, even though less that twelve hours ago you were the one threatening the divorce. He turns cold eyes on you and shrugs out of your grip.

"No, no. You want me gone, that's fine by me."

**The End. **

**I'm joking, seriously. I'm _really _sorry for the long time between updates but I've only just gotten my laptop back. I'm afraid I'm going to be MIA for the next two weeks; a holiday and then off to the Olympics (Track&Field and Women's diving – Me, mum and my sister wanted to see Tom Daley but we didn't get those tickets.) **

**I'm off to Cyprus, Paphos to be exact, so that means I'm going to be able to re-write the honeymoon scene for the 'Re-Writtien' story in much more detail. I _promise _that I will be writing in my note-book for every spare minute I own! I love you guys too much to abandon you! **


	7. A New Direction

**Okay... not sure what I make of the new features on the stories. Do I really need to be reminded how crap and unpopular 99% of the stuff I write is? Nope! **

**On a plus side, it's good to see some rain! Sure, I got caught in the downpour at the Olympic Stadium yesterday, but it's a _good thing_! I hadn't seen rain in _twelve days_! **

**A huge shout out to LoisLane1986! I've changed one or two things at her request, which actually works out for the best so don't worry about that. I'm going to start dedicating chapters to people who review because I feel like I'm ignoring you guys otherwise. So this is dedicated to LoisLane1986 :) **

As expected, Becker doesn't come home again. On Tuesday Matt shows up to collect his things. He doesn't stay long or say much. He asks you to say hi to the girls for him, apologises for all that's happened, commends you on the bruise you've left on Becker's cheek, then leaves. As he walks from your house, so does your last connection with the ARC. The others would come round to check on Becker and the girls. Now they'll only do that when Becker has them. You wince. The fight for custody isn't going to be pretty. You wonder what will happen. You don't work but you're not deemed fit to look after them on your own. Becker works but he's hardly ever home so that's not ideal. You'd go crawling back to Becker if you thought Megan and Alia would end up in a home. You decide that it's going to be best for you to get a job; at least then you wont have to live on benefits.

But you have a history of mental breakdowns and an employer is unlikely to employ someone like that. You sigh and grit your teeth. When the girls head off to school on Wednesday you pull out your old CV and decide to start with Public Relations jobs. A 'Hospitality – B2B' in South East London, a Marketing Account Director in South London, a Publications and Pr-Management in South West London, a 'Language Matters' PR Manager, an Account Manager in Covent Gardens and a Digital PR Manager in central London. The chance of you actually getting a job or getting any form of custody over Megan and Alia is three billion to one.

X

Three months later reveals that you are that one. Alia is young enough to have to go with what the court would say; week days with you and every other Friday to Monday with Becker. Megan, at fourteen, is old enough to be able to choose who she'd rather be with. She chooses to do the same as Alia to offer the younger girl someone to lean on.

But there is no divorce. You and Becker managed to withhold your anger at each other to discuss it. Alia is only ten and Megan is sketchy at the best of times. You both decided that a divorce wouldn't be fair on them, but neither of you can live with each other any more. It's hard, but there's no denying things aren't getting better. The two of you have settled for a separation instead. Alia and Megan will alternate between the two of you and you'll go back to being 'Miss X'. Becker will move across the city to be closer to work but stay within the catchment area for Megan's and Alia's schools. It's hard for you to watch the one man you loved more than anything leave you, but it would be harder to have him within reach.

You never hear back from any employers, not that you're surprised, and you're placed on the dole.

The Saturday after the separation is finalised and it's Megan's birthday. It's the first weekend she'll be spending with her father although she'll be spending Saturday cruising the streets of London with her friends. She doesn't want a family celebration so you don't have to worry about facing everyone so soon. However, you do have to worry about keeping your mind off Ben. You've never moved house, even now when you're separated, and you're beginning to question that decision. Now that Becker's gone it wouldn't make sense to move; places would be restricted to a certain distance from the school and his apartment and the two girls seem happy here. As it is, you don't think you could bring yourself to pack up the old nursery at any rate.

A loud knock on your front door on Friday morning makes you jump. Alia and Megan left the house two hours ago for school so it cant be them. You haven't seen anyone from the ARC since Matt came to collect Becker's stuff three months ago. You open the door hesitantly and come face to face with a middle aged man and a bright smile. "Good morning, Ma'am. Sorry to bother you so early but I would like to introduce myself: My name is Jacques McDamon, but you may call me Jack. I am your new neighbour."

You take a second to analyse him and decide that Connor, Matt and Danny would probably shoot this guy in the face if he spoke to Abby, Jess or Jenny. He's about the same height as Becker with black hair which falls into his eyes and a tanned, muscled build. In all he just reminds you of Becker. "Nice to meet you. If you'll excuse me, I'm in the middle of cleaning the house." It's a hurry to slam the door in his face and lock it for extra measure.

You head back up the stairs to where you're cleaning out your bedroom and boxing any stuff that Becker's forgotten. You've mentally allowed yourself one visit to his new apartment to drop off anything he's forgotten. So far you've come up with a shirt, a pair of socks and a belt. You'll give the latter two items back but you have every intention of keeping his shirt. It's the one which you wore once or twice around the house and to bed and you're pretty sure Becker remembers that. If he does and you gave it back, he'd just throw it out. Right?

The only thing left to check is the wardrobe. Sliding back the doors you get to work of hanging anything of yours up on Becker's old hangars whilst checking the ones with clothes on it. Your search of the floor and the rail turns up nothing of his except for a Jacket he hadn't worn since you and him married. Even so, you place it into the carrier bag with the other two items and head downstairs to write a note to slip inside. It takes you a few minutes to decide what to write and how to phrase it, but you come up with just writing about the items, not the issues between the two of you:

_I found some of your things whilst trying to find something else to tidy up. There was your old red and black checked shirt too, but I thought I'd hang onto that as I seemed to claim it before. If you do want it though, I'll wash it and send it over with the girls. _

You want nothing more than to add a kiss on the end of it but you refrain. You grab your keys and the note with his new address on it and head for the car. It takes nearly forty five minutes to navigate the traffic and the roadworks, then find the correct apartment. Becker ditched his car a few years ago and never replaced it. As a result, it's easy to tell he's not in when the standard issue ARC car is missing. You park in his spot and head for the lift, locating his room and tying the bag to his door handle. You haven't got a key but the apartment doesn't look like the type to hold thieves.

Two hours later and you're trying to fix dinner whilst listening to Alia jabber happily about her day and her playground adventures with Molly and James. She starts secondary school in September and can't wait to be in the same school as Suzie, Morgan and Taylor, even if they will be the year above her. You also have to listen to Megan go on about Jeremy and how much she's in love with him. It makes you happy that she's found someone she loves, but you doubt it'll last. Becker _was _meant to be picking them up after school but Megan called to say he was held up with work. No surprise there. What is a surprise is who she reports will be picking them up at seven: Jess and Matt. This alone has you in a panic all night and you revert back to cleaning the house.

"Mum? Mum! Oi! Mum!" you stop cleaning the kitchen counter and turn to face Megan expectantly. "The house is _clean_. I promise you, there is not a single germ left in this house." you smile and shake your head.

"Sorry."

"Don't be. I know you're worried about Aunt Jess and Uncle Matt coming round, but no one blames you for the divorce."

"Separation." you correct. "I'm still hoping there's a chance to fix this."

"Dad said exactly the same thing yet neither of you believe it's going to get better." she doesn't five you chance to digest the news as she glances at clock. "Seven o'clock. They'll be here in a bit so go put on your favourite jeans and give your hair a brush." you smile and give her a quick hug before heading upstairs and following her orders. At ten past seven you hear her let Jess and Matt into the house. They don't call out a greeting and neither do you. You don't want to head downstairs and face them but you don't want to stay up here and seem like a coward.

"Aunty! Aunty Si!" The decision to go downstairs is made when you hear Suzie call up the stairs. A moment later and Taylor joins the shouting.

"Aunty Si!"

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" you call back, heading from the stairs and grinning. "Hey girls!" you jump the last two steps and pull the two twelve year olds into a hug.

"Hi!" They say at the same time, an annoying habit they've perfected throughout the year. "Did you miss us?"

"Of course I did! I miss all of you!"

"Yay!"

"Do you have any cookies?" Taylor adds and you shake your head. "Aw." she pouts and you roll your eyes.

"Okay, okay. Go check the 'Goodie Cupboard'." the two girls squeal happily and run off into the kitchen. You steel yourself and head into the living room. You expect to be greeted by icy looks from Jess and Matt, maybe a cold shoulder but not the bone-crushing hug from Jess, nor the sideways hug and kiss in the hair from Matt.

"Not your fault." Jess smiles as she lets you go. "Call if you need a chat." You smile thankfully at her and move to hug Alia and Megan.

"You two be good and enjoy your birthday, Megan." You smile and the two girls nod.

"See you soon, mama. I'll call you before bed." Alia smiles up at you. "Even if dada wont let me."

"I'm sure he will." you reassure her but you're not convinced. "Now scat or you'll be late. The last thing I need is your dad getting all huffy because I held you up."

"Bye, mama." Alia hugs you again before tottering over to Jess and taking her hand. Megan picks up the two small bags and joins them as you go in search of Suzie and Taylor. You find them nibbling on a cookie at the table.

"Why don't you two just take the rest of them?" you smile as you bag the remaining cookies and hold it out to them. They grin happily, hugging your waits and taking the bag.

"We miss you, Aunty." Taylor smiles sadly. "You need to come and visit more."

"Yeah. James gets really upset when you're not there at the weekends." Suzie adds and you frown.

"Weekends? What happens at the weekends?"

"One Saturday every month, usually the first, we go to the park and have a picnic. Uncle Becker always said that you were busy or didn't want to come." Taylor looks hurt as she tells you of Becker's lies and you feel anger and pain.

"That's not true, honey. I didn't even know about the weekends. I do the shopping on Saturday mornings." the two girls look at each other then smile at you hopefully.

"So, you'll come three weeks tomorrow?" Suzie asks and you smile, kissing the top of their heads.

"Of course. You give me a ring and I'll be there. Now go on or your parents will get crabby."

As you watch them drive away, somehow all fitting into a standard issue ARC car, you wish you hadn't given Becker his stuff back. You'd been doing the shopping on Saturdays for nearly eight years. That's almost eight years Becker's been keeping secrets from you. Maybe there is no hope.

**Okay, this will sort itself out I promise. And maybe James, my favourite little six year old in any story, will help :)**


	8. Moving On

**This chapter is dedicated to SadenBecker who's reading this despite being a man. Go you! He's also written a 'Primeval and You' styled story which I _will _get round to reviewing when my life calms down a little bit.**

**Sorry this isn't very long, but there's a _huge_ (I think so anyway) plot twist in this. **

Days slowly turn into weeks, and those weeks slowly turn into months. Before you know it, another four months have passed. Seven months without Becker and you're doing better than you thought. Sure, you miss him. You miss him like the grass misses the rain in the summer, or a child misses their puppy. And maybe you were wrong; maybe you _would _have taken a bullet from him. But that doesn't matter now. None of it matters any more. According to Megan, Becker's settled down and is slowly fixing the temper he had when he lived with you. Even Alia's gotten over the face that her parents are separated.

Thinking about your two daughters, who are currently spending the week with Becker, Megan's different. She's move skittish and jumps when certain key words are mentioned, like 'under-age'. She hasn't worn her usual skinny tops in two months and she went through a patch of throwing up every day for a week or so earlier this month. You pray to God that it's not what you think it is. Alia was ill too, and you know the same thing can't be happening to her. That really is impossible. You've been hinting heavily to Megan that she can tell you anything, but nothing seems to be coming of it. However, a week later, Megan comes home from a walk in the park with Jeremy. The two look a little pale faced and ill as they ask if they can talk to you. You send Alia upstairs to her room as you follow them into the living room. "Have a seat, Miss X." You've only known Jeremy a month and, from what you can gather, Becker's never met him at all. You do as the boy asks, watching the two of them wearily.

Megan's stood nervously infront of you, wringing her hands together. Jeremy is stood behind her looking as equally anxious, if not more so. "Have you killed someone?" You ask and the two shake their heads. "Then we can work round it. What's the problem?"

Megan looks back at Jeremy who gives her a quick breath. "Mum, please don't freak but," a deep breath. "but; I'm pregnant." Your eyes widen and you stop breathing for a moment, unsure that you've heard her right. "Uh, mum? Mum, you need to _breathe_."

"Megan, tell me you are joking." Even you're surprised that your voice is so calm and level.

Megan wrings her hands together even harder. "I'm sorry." She says quietly and you grit your teeth together. Tears are beginning to well up in her eyes and, for the first time in nearly eight years, she looks scared.

"Megan Travina Becker, tell me this is some kind of sick joke or so help me I am going to kick you out."

"You can't!" She cries, her tears overflowing and running down her cheeks. "You can't kick me out!"

"And you can't be pregnant!"

"Well, I am!"

"Megan, you're_ sixteen! _What about your education? The rest of your life? When you have a child everything you do has to be focussed around them and you're not ready for that! You're too irresponsible!"

"Miss X-" Jeremy tries to speak in but you cut the blonde boy off.

"Quiet! You're responsible here too and there is _no way _I'm letting you off the hook!"

"Mum-"

"What about Alia, huh? What about her? What's she going to think when her sister, only _five years _older than her has a baby? Alia already want one so what's going to happen when she sees it's possible at a young age? If she comes home at _thirteen _and tells me she's pregnant it'll be _your _fault! And what the Hell is your father going to say?"

Megan looks a little more than ill at the idea of Becker finding out. "Mum, I didn't think this would hap-"

"Oh, I can see that! The two of you have only been dating, what? Ten months? The two of you are under age for crying out loud! Didn't either of you listen during class?"

"We didn't think it would happen to us!"

"Which is why you shouldn't have done it!"

"Mum, liste-"

"No, Megan. _You _listen to _me_. You are grounded _forever _and you are not having even a _hint _of a social life for a month. Phone, laptop, TV privileges; all gone. I will pick you up from school and drop you off every morning. The two of you can discuss what happens next in school. If you choose to have an abortion then so be it, but convince me that you need it. If you keep it, then so help me it is _your _responsibility to look after it!"

"I _can't _have an abortion!" Megan cries between her sobs. She pulls up her jumper to reveal a small bump. "I'm four months pregnant!" You drop your head into your hands; she has to keep the baby. She's past the deadline for the abortion. "Mum, please. I need you. I don't want what happened to you to happen to me. I don't want to loose my baby, but I don't want to loose my family. "Mum, _please._" Her words are barely there through her sobs and you can feel the tears prick at your eyes. You're a crappy mother, how can you be a grandmother too? You take a shuddering breath and get to your feet.

"I'm not asking you to do this on your own, but I'm not doing it for you. Jeremy, you get a job. You support your child and if you even _think _about running off, I will hunt you down. You hear me?" He nods. "Good." You open your arms for Megan who falls into them, still crying. "Jeremy, go and fetch Alia from her room. The two of you can tell her now."

Alia actually takes it really well. The idea of becoming an aunt and being given responsibility sits well with her. She's already planning the room design. This stops you short. You don't have a spare room in the house. Well, you _do_, but you're not sure you can bring yourself to do what needs to be done. "The baby can stay in my room." Megan reassures you. "Don't do it."

"No." You shake your head and get to your feet, moving to the dresser to fish out the painting books. "It's time to let go. A new generation living under my roof means new beginnings. That room's been gathering dust for fifteen years. It's time for a change." The words are killing you, but you know they're true. There's no need for the nursery any more when it's still set up like Ben's still alive. No. It's time to strip it out and get rid of it. "You can help me box up the stuff whilst Alia picks out some colours. Jeremy, in the garage are some boxes. Can you go and fetch them please?" He nods, seemingly glad that he's off the hook for now. "We'll try and box as much as we can today." You inform them once the teenager is back. "Tomorrow, we're going to talk to Becker." The two parents-to-be look terrified at the idea but don't complain as they start to take the boxes upstairs. Alia stays in the living room to watch telly and for that you're grateful; you don't think you could stand any questions.

The three of you enter the nursery in silence and set about boxing thing up. The room's pretty much as it was left when Megan got her own room. Both her stuff and Ben's stuff is still present and like it was the day they left. There are only seven boxes so you box up Ben's stuff first; his clothes, his books and his toys. Jeremy sets about dismantling the the cribs and Megan moves all of the smaller items like the chairs into the hallway. You can only bring yourself to do three hours of the work and when it hits three o'clock, you have to call it to a halt. "Is you father working today?" You ask Megan as you lock up the room on your way downstairs.

"He's meant to have today off, but you know what he's like."

"Get your stuff. We're going over now." Megan looks a little ill at this but moves to get Alia ready. She told you during the boxing that Jeremy's mum found out yesterday, and that it's Becker they're really worried about telling. You can see why. He's scary shit when he needs to be.

The four of you pile into your car ten minutes later and begin the long drive over to Becker's apartment. Megan is somewhat critical that you know where he lives. "I worked with the public, Megan." You point out. "Old nosing habits die hard."

Megan and Jeremy had mentioned that his mother had broken down in tears when she found out. He didn't have a dad so they didn't have to worry about telling him. You'd nearly cried too, but you doubt that Becker will. He'll just scream himself hoarse. Again.

Alia leads your small group up to Becker's floor and knocks on the door. So far, she's the only one who hasn't done anything wrong. There are a few seconds of silence before a somewhat ragged, unshaven Becker opens the door. You catch his eye for half a second before you look away. An unshaven Becker is one heck of a treat to eyes which haven't seen him in months. "Can we come in please daddy?" Alia asks from infront of him and he moves to the side. Megan grabs Jeremy's hand and pulls him inside, shielding him from Becker's glare. You aren't entirely sure whether you should follow them into the flat and Becker looks a little torn as to if he should let you or not.

"Why," he sighed and ran a hang over his face. "am I getting the urge to kiss you?" his steps aside to allow you to enter, blushing madly. He hasn't kissed you in God knows how long so it's a pretty random thing for him to come out with.

The place is a tip. Clothes and books are strewn over every surface possible, things are dusty and there are cups and plates everywhere. Yet there's not actually any food. "You aren't going to like what you're about to hear." You sigh, fighting your blush and turning to face him. "You may want to take a seat." you follow him over to the sofa, sitting opposite him with Alia on your lap, Megan and Jeremy on your right.

"Dad, this is my boyfriend; Jeremy Hale. Jeremy, my dad; Captain Hilary Becker. I am _really _sorry that the two of you had to meet under these circumstances."

"Unless one of you has cancer then it's not going to be that bad."

"That's what I said." You mutter. "Just don't scream at her. I've already done that." You add in a louder voice and Megan flinches at the memory.

"Dad, I'm pregnant."

And Becker looses it.


	9. Explosions

**Wow. I'm not being too nice to you guys at the moment. One bad thing after another, no matter which story you read. I'll try and make some light out of this soon, I really will! **

**This is dedicated to anyone who reads and got their A-Level results today, even if they don't review. **

Becker erupts in a volcano of colourful words and phrases, up on his feet, hands in the air and face slowly reddening as he screams at the two terrified teenagers infront of him. Your hands instinctively cover Alia's ears, but that wont do her much good. You scoop her up and carry her to the other end of the apartment, into the small room she and Megan share. You don't have any time to take in your surroundings as you close the door on Alia, making your way back to the living room and World War 3. You try not to listen to the words spouting from Becker's mouth, nor the ones Megan's shooting back. You try to cut across but neither seem to be able to hear you. Jeremy's looking a little lost and a lot terrified of the army man screaming his head off at his girlfriend. He catches your eye and you motion him over. "Get Megan and Alia and take them back to the car _before _Becker rounds on you." Jeremy nods, happy for an excuse to escape and grabs Megan's shoulder's. She's still arguing with Becker as Jeremy drags her from the room. "Seriously?" You round on Becker. "I specifically said _not _to scream at her!"

"She's fucking pregnant!" It appears he isn't done yelling yet. "She's sixteen and she's fucking pregnant! She'd have been _fifteen _when she fell pregnant!"

"Yes, and the only people we have to blame are you and I."

Becker's still seething as he clenches his fists together and releases them slowly. "She is _not _having that baby."

"That's hardly your choice." You snort. "Besides, she's four months pregnant. I refuse to see my eldest daughter give birth to an aborted baby!"

"I will _not _see her have a baby at sixteen!"

"Well_ I _will! It's her choice and what's happened has happened. She'll look after the baby and herself under my roof until she's old enough to move out."

"Oh? And who's going to look after it when she's at school? Who's room will it end up sleeping in?"

"_I _will look after it when she is at school and it will sleep in the sodding _nursery_. Alia didn't get that privilege but my grandchild will not be subjected to my incapability to turn a blind eye."

"Right. You're going to move on because your daughter is pregnant?"

"Our!" You yell and he blinks. "Megan is _our _daughter, not just mine! You _will _support her and you _will _support the child. You don't have to like it but you will grin and bare it." You turn sharply on your heel and stalk towards the door. You throw your final sentence over your shoulder and you slam the door. "And maybe I can move on because I'm not being pressured by the most ignorant fuck in the world."

X

"Alia's terrified to come out of her room." Megan reports a week later. Alia's at Becker house as she's meant to be, but Megan and Becker still aren't speaking so she hasn't gone. Megan's taken a break from cleaning the nursery to phone her younger sister.

"Did you tell her she can come home if she needs to?"

"Yep. I've scrubbed all the walls down. Jeremy's bringing the paint over tomorrow." Megan and Jeremy have insisted that they sort the nursery out so that you don't have to. Externally you don't seem too bothered by it. Internally you're thrilled. "We're going for an Egyptian Blue."

X

This was it. This was the final push. In just over two months, sixty three days to be exact, Alex would step into the future, back to the home he couldn't remember. Well, not entirely. Sometimes, when he was laying awake at night on watch, he'd remember something. Painted dinosaurs on a green background, or a flying green lizard. He heard things in his dreams too; a man singing and a woman's laugh. There was also a baby's cry. He assumed the man singing was his father. The woman had to be his mother, but she sounded different. Maybe it was because she wasn't so grief stricken at her life being torn away from her and being driven from her home. As for the baby, he had no idea. He had no siblings, and apparently none of his mother's friends had children. Yet he couldn't actually _ask _his mother. Some things were better left unsaid.

He reflected on these things as he followed his mother through the forests of the late Triassic period. One her visits to the future she'd managed to obtain maps to teach him about the lay of the land. For example, he knew that they were travelling from Southern Pangea, Gondwana to be exact, to the Northern tip of Pangea. They'd been staying in what would be India, only a lot further south-west. Europe, more specifically England, was much more Northern. The trek would take weeks but it was a time killer. The devise his mother used to jump from time to time was slowly dying out. It would be easier to jump to the future from exactly the right date. They were currently 273 million years behind the world Alex had been born into. It would be easier to jump this time rather than jump that time plus or minus a few months. Alex didn't really understand it, but he knew better than to question his mother. He had done once and it had not ended well.

Actually, when Alex really put his mind to it, he came up with the reason for the delay; his mother wanted the job done, no distractions. She'd been drilling hatred for The Family into his head since he'd been old enough to recognise her words. By dragging it out it ensured he was pumped, tense and ready to go. Make sure that he wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger. In all honesty, Alex just wanted to get to a place where you didn't have to be afraid that your dinner was going to jump up and eat you. He may not be able to remember a time when this hadn't been the case, but his mother had promised him that. _If _he could kill five people.

It had been one; the mother. That was when his mother had first told him about the 'mission'. Then she'd added the father onto the list, saying that he wasn't as different from the mother as she'd thought. The third had been the eldest daughter. His age, looked like the mother. The fourth had been the youngest daughter; eleven years old. He wasn't entirely sure he could kill someone seven years his junior, but his mother had left no room for arguments. The fifth was the unborn child the eldest daughter was carrying.

The murders were to be public, in a manner of speaking. He was to kill them infront of their friends as a reminder. His mother and a pack of dogs kept hidden somewhere would solve the problem of the friends and their families.

But, lingering at the back of his mind, was the thought that _maybe _he shouldn't be pointing the gun at the possibly innocent family. _Maybe _he should be pointing it elsewhere.

**This is pretty crap as I'm shattered but I wanted to get this up. I'm off on a long weekend and wont be back until Monday/Tuesday. Sorry 'bout the shortness and the crappieness! **


	10. Breakaway

**This is dedicated to everyone who gets exam results tomorrow and Saturday. Personally, I'm shitting myself "/**

Alex's initial response to his mother's change in plan was to roll his eyes discreetly. Rather than jumping 273 million years to the future and the time that they needed to be in, they were going to jump 231 million years to the Late Eocene to pick up the Hyaenodons. In all honesty, Alex shouldn't have been surprised. His mother's plans changed as quick and as often as he moods did. Asking why or complaining would only get him a smart slap. "This will only take us a few extra hours at the most." His mother was blithering on about something a few meters ahead but Alex wasn't really paying attention. He was less concerned about their plans and more concerned about how they were going to stop a pack of prehistoric dogs turning on them, rather than on the people they needed to be turned on.

Alex realised his mother had stopped talking and there was no sign of her ahead. Where she'd been stood was a now fading anomaly. On instinct he broke into a sprint and launched himself through the rip in time, landing soundlessly on the other side as it spun closed. His mother hadn't noticed him missing which wasn't that surprising. Although she went on about how much she'd loved his father, Philip Alexander Burton, she never seemed to love _him_. Not that it was a great loss, right? Alex didn't particularly feel anything for her, no form of connection or trust. There wasn't even a hint of motherly love from her. But like he said; no big loss. Right?

"Wait here." Alex jolted to a halt before he walked into his mothers back. "I'll go and fetch the dogs. _Do not move from this spot_." With a sniff, she disappeared into the surrounding forest. Alex found a suitably sized tree trunk to lean against whilst he waited for his mother to track down the creatures. Whilst he was waiting a small, rat like creature scurried through the plants next to him. If his mother were here she'd pounce on it and kill it, saving it for food later on. Alex wasn't quite so inclined to kill a helpless little rodent. He scooped it up when he saw something glinting around its neck.

"What you got there, buddy?" He muttered, bringing the animal closer to his face to inspect it. "I don't think that suits you." It appeared to be a necklace of some sort. It wasn't rapped around its neck as he thought, but trapped around its teeth in its mouth. The chain was very thin, but looked more masculine than feminine.

It was a little tricky for Alex to extract it without harming the creature, but he managed it. He quickly checked the rodent for anything else and set it free when he found nothing. The chain in his hand was thin and silver with a silver pendant hanging from it. On one site was the outline of a black dragon. On the other was a faint inscription. It was faint to read and the writing was small meaning Alex could only make out a few letters.

_B-c-r,-t- -, S- -x_

Alex tried tilting it to read more of it, but he couldn't quite make it out. He shoved it into his shoe, a pair his mother had come back with on a trip from the future, as his mother reappeared with the ugly grey things in tow. "I thought I told you not to move!"

"It's easier to think about next month sitting down." Alex lied smoothly. This seemed to satisfy his mother who gestured to the tree. "Climb it. We'll rest here for the day. We'll move on tomorrow."

"And those things?

"I was getting to that." She snapped. "They'll watch the bottom of the tree for us. Now help me up!"

X

Megan is on her eighteenth week of pregnancy and things seem to have cooled down between her and Becker. He's still not accepting and he still wants to kill Jeremy, but they can be in the same room together. Jeremy's already gotten the finance sorted out, getting a job at McDonalds across the city and as a cleaner at his school. He donates 50% of his pay towards Megan and the unborn baby which is put away for safe keeping. Megan's bump is much more noticeable than it was before, especially when she takes pride in showing it off. Her school's been informed of her situation along with several governmental threats should something happen to her on their premises.

However, at half past three on a school Thursday, Megan and her pregnancy are the least of your worries. Alia's parent's evening starts in fifteen minutes and you and Becker have come to an agreement to go at the same time. This doesn't stop you cowering in the car with Megan for the last few minutes. "Is that daddy over there?" Alia points across to a black bonnet just sticking out from the row of cars on the playground. This area isn't one of your favourites; eighteen years ago Becker, Abby and Matt fell through an anomaly onto this very playground, exhausted, ill and close to death.

"I think so." You saw quickly, remembering that your youngest daughter still needs an answer. "You can go and say hi if you want." Alia quickly kisses your cheek and jumps from the car. Becker meets her halfway, nodding in your direction. You steel yourself before getting out to join the two of them. Becker's still wearing his 'work glare', as Megan nick-named it when she was five, and you see no point trying to talk to him. "Lead the way then, Allie." Alia scowls at the nickname and takes one of your hands, still clutching Becker's, and pulls you into the school. You wonder if Becker's ever connected the school to the anomaly. He wasn't exactly conscious when he came back through.

The teacher's waiting for you and motions for you to take a seat. Alia wanders off to go and play on the whiteboard whilst the three of you sit at the back of the classroom.

"Alia has to be one of the best students I've taught." Miss Bee smiles across the desk at you. "She's polite, calm, happy, thoughtful and acts like a mother to all of the other students. When a child's parents go through a separation it can often have a negative effect on them. Alia didn't batter an eyelash when she told me you two were splitting up."

"That's my girl." You smile. The teacher glances briefly between you and Becker who are sat several feet apart, radiating negativity.

"Her work is straight As, something difficult to obtain with our new curriculum. I'd recommend trying to steer her towards more science, language or maths based subjects. Secondary school teaching if she wishes to follow that path." The teacher slides a book across to you and you pick it up. It's her maths book and various things have been highlighted with 'important' or 'need to know' next to it. "These are the markings of a teacher. Can you tell me why she's suddenly started to do things like this on her work? They're the times tables but she knows them backwards.

You smile wider as you gingerly hand the book across to Becker who takes it without looking at you. "Our eldest daughter, Megan, is going to have a baby. I think Alia is very keen on teaching the baby things."

"Megan... Megan... Yes." The teacher smiles and leans back in her chair. "I remember Megan. Bright young thing. Now, if you'll take a look at Alia's art work." You zone out and take to watching Alia doodle on the whiteboard. She's drawn several baby-related things, including name plates, and moved onto household objects. She's certainty good at art. You turn back to the teacher to find her watching you expectantly.

"Forgive her." Becker snarls, giving you a glare. "She doesn't pay attention to a lot of things."

"No matter." The teacher smiles. "Thanks for coming in."

Surprisingly, Becker waits until Alia's strapped into the car to round on you. "What the Hell was that little stunt?" He demands. "Alia getting more attention that you or something? You get jealous?"

"What on Earth are you on about?" You force a laugh, knowing Alia will be watching you. "I was watching Alia draw on the whiteboard."

"If you'd been _listening _to the teacher, she could've told you what she likes to draw!"

"Observing told me baby items and household objects. Judging from the state of the fridge and her room, I'd also say animals." You roll your eyes at him. "Christ, you really do hate me don't you? Grow up, _Hilary_." You snap at him and practically throw yourself into your car.

"Why do you and daddy like to annoy each other?" Alia asks as you pull out onto the main road and hit the traffic.

You shrug and try to hide a smile. "We're old, dear. It's what we do."

X

Alex had still volunteered to take the first half of the night watch that evening. He wanted to know what was on the back of that necklace and he knew how to go about it. His mother just had to be asleep before he could do it. The only possession he'd had since he was a boy was a notebook in his mothers bag. He often wrote ideas and drew various views into it. There were also a few rubbings.

He continued with a drawing of the horizon until he was sure his mother was asleep. He flicked to the back of the book and carefully removed a page, making sure there was no trace it had ever been part of the book. He then fished out the pendant and placed it on the book and under the paper. It only took him a few seconds to make out the words, but he was left more confused than before!

_Becker, with love, Si xx_

Who was Becker? And who was **(Enter Your Name Here)**? Surely 'Becker' couldn't be a first name? A. Becker? No, that didn't sound right. B. Becker? C. Becker? D. Becker? E. Becker? F, G, H Becker?

Alex paused his doodling. H. Becker? Yes, that sounded better than the others. But what did the H stand for? Henry? Somehow, Alex didn't think Henry fit. "Something he didn't like." He muttered. It was either took long to have put onto the back of the charm, or 'Becker' hated it. Hamish? Harrison? Haden? Hiram? Holis? Horatio? No, none of them sounded right. But maybe he was wrong. Maybe Becker was a first name or it didn't begin with 'H'. He was only going on hunches. He slipped the book back into the rucksack and slipped the pendant and sheet of paper into his shoe. It made for uncomfortable walking, but he'd had worse.

X

It's the Monday after the parent's evening when your day goes from bad to worse. You've been avoiding your neighbour all week and have decided that he's a creep and should've been killed in the place of Mrs Parkinsons. You've just finished your lunch when there's a persistent, yet light knowing on your front door. You get to your feet and ready yourself for another face-off with your neighbour.

You pull open the front door and expect to see someone about your height. What you don't expect to see is a small six year old who barely comes up to your thigh crying his eyes out. "James!" You cry in alarm, dropping to your feet to pull him into a tight embrace. You scan the street over his shoulder but see nothing out of the ordinary. "Dear God boy, what are you _doing_?!" You scoop him up into your arms and back into the hall, closing the door behind you and heading towards the living room, cuddling the crying child. James presses his face into your neck and clenched his fists. "James, you walked the forty minutes from school to my house on your own?" You seat him on the sofa and sit down in front of him. He nods and you sigh. "James, that's dangerous. You could've been killed!"

"I'd have been killed if I stayed in school." He sniffs quietly and your eyes widen. You know he wouldn't have actually been killed, it's merely an exaggeration, but the underlying meaning is still screaming out to you.

"I beg your pardon? James, are you being bullied?" He nods and you groan. "Do you want to tell me the whole story?"

"Can I have a cookie?" You grin and get to your feet, ruffling his hair on the way to fetch one of your famous cookies. You grab a dozen, setting them down on the coffee table and handing him one. "You can have more as long as you tell me the whole truth okay?" He nods and begins the story.

**Awww! James has made an appearance! Granted that it's a bad thing he walked all that way on his own because he's six, but he's my favourite so I had to bring him in :)**


	11. Shout it Out

**I'm really sorry about the gap, but my muse has run away and each chapter's a push. I don't want to give up on this story or the next one, so please bear with me. This is dedicated to XNothing-With-Orange-InX . **

James takes an hour to tell his story, by which time it's lunch. The two of you eat the cookies for lunch as you re-run the story in your head; James has been bullied for the best part of the school year, eight months to be exact, by a group of three boys two years older than him. It had started off with just name-calling, then it had escalated to his stuff being stolen and returned defaced and broken. Then it just wasn't returned. He was pushed over on the playground and on his way home from school. Then the threats had started against him and Molly; the boys were in her class. That morning James went into school but slipped out before registration and took the walk to your house. He got lost several times and had to hide from people so it took him somewhat longer. The small scrapes on James' hands and knees are raw and red and for three seconds you wonder how Abby and Connor haven't spotted them.

Then you remember that Chris takes Morgan, James, Taylor, Suzie and Molly home with him after school to babysit. The kids are picked up at six and in bed by seven thirty. There's no time for the parents to see the underlying problems their children go through and Megan and Chris aren't going to pry. You find it sad that the one adult the others wont let their children see is the one adult that knows what's really going on. "James, I'm going to call your mummy and daddy and then we're going to talk about this, okay?" James nods in agreement but it turns out that you don't have to call Abby or Connor, they call you.

The call comes through about half past one and Connor sounds so worried you're terrified he's going to have a heart attack. _We can't find James! _He blurts. The sounds of the ARC reach you as background noise and you figure you're on speaker.

_He walked out of school and we can't find him! You're the last person we're checking! _Abby sounds close to tears but her words anger you.

"Seriously? I'm the only responsible adult _outside _of the ARC, the only other adult James knows, and I'm the _last _person you call?"

_Responsible isn't what I'd call you. _You hear Becker and your blood boils. You move swiftly into the kitchen, sealing the door behind you.

"Shut the fuck up, Becker. If I'm not responsible then why have I just been comforting a sobbing James, who walked to my house from school without telling _anyone_, about his bully problems and his death threats?" There's a stunned silence to this and you can't help but feel a little bit satisfied. "James turned up on my doorstep about eleven o'clock crying and in a right state. He's been bullied for eight months and he's covered in cuts and bruises. He had to skip school today when the bullies threatened to kill him!"

_They're just kids! _Abby snaps but you can hear her running down the corridors. _They aren't going to kill him!_

"Maybe not, but from the perspective of a six year old who's been beaten up God knows how many times, you can see why he ran. If you're all so God damned responsible, then why the Hell haven't you noticed?!" You demand before ending the call. "Mummy and Daddy are on their way." You tell the child as you re-enter the living room.

"Are they mad?"

"More at me than at you."

"Why? You're nice. You talk to me and comfort me. Mummy and Daddy don't have time for me." James sniffs again and you pull him onto your lap.

"But they love you."

"We all love _you_."

You bite your lip before replying. "Who's 'We'?"

"Me, Molly, Taylor, Morgan, Suzie, Alia, Chris and Megan." This shocks you. "We all think you're really brave for coping with the loss of Ben and getting a separation from Uncle Becker. He's always so grumpy all the time and he scares us. We like your cookies too." He grins up at you and you smile, ruffling his hair.

"I'll give you some to take home. You should ask mummy and daddy to bring you round more."

James shakes his head. "Mummy and daddy say that you're 'emotionally unstable' and that they don't want us near you." This cuts you deep. Abby and Connor were your _friends_. "The other adults all say it too."

"Well, you shouldn't listen to them. If you want to see me then you call and I'll come and get you."

"Really?"

"Really. You tell the others that too." You smile as the door is almost knocked off its hinges. "You have another cookie whilst I go and get your parents, okay?" He nods and you leave him nibbling on a cookie. You only just get the door open before Abby and Connor barge past, Becker and Matt hot on their heels. "Hey!" You call after them, chasing them into the living room. "What are you two doing here?" You face the two higher ranking members who glare at you.

"We've come to talk." Matt says darkly. From the corner of your eye you can see James struggling to get out of a bone-crushing hug from Abby.

"Mummy! You're squishing me!"

"What do you expect when you run off like that! If you want to see Miss X so bad then ask."

"Seriously?" You fold your arms and glare across at Abby. "I'm 'Miss X' but Becker gets to be 'Uncle Becker'? Why? Because he scares them?"

"He does not!" Abby argues, returning your glare.

"I beg to differ. If you're ever home long enough to take a look at your children then ask them!"

Abby opens her mouth to reply but James cuts in. "No, mummy. Don't argue with her. We love her and we don't want her to be upset because you wont let her see us." James pins his mother with the 'Maitland glare' and Abby can only gape as he holds out his arms to you. You pluck him smugly from Abby's grip and balance him on your hip. Oh, the innocence of a child can be a blessing in disguise.

"You're not getting another cookie, mister. You're getting podgy!" You poke his belly and he squeals happily. "See! You even sound like a piglet!" James giggles and clings to your neck. "I think I see a tail."

"No!" James shrieks. "I don't have a tail!"

"Calm down, kid." You laugh. "You're ruining my ears!"

"Sorry." James kisses your cheek and wriggles before glancing across at Abby. In that moment you know he's about to seriously annoy her. "Come with us on Saturday!" He asks and your frown, not missing how all of the other adults in the room stiffen.

"Saturday? What's on Saturday?"

"James, enough. You've proven your point!" Becker hisses.

"Just shut up, Becker." You glare at him over your shoulder. "James?"

"We all go to the park on Saturday. Didn't you know we go once a month?"  
"James!" Abby cries. "Stop it!"

"It's fine, Abby." You smile sweetly at her. "Megan and Alia have already told me about it. You want me to come?" You ask, turning back to James. He nods.

"We all do."

"Then I'll come."

X

"Aunty Si!" Molly and Suzie barrel across the grass and slam into your midsection, hugging you tightly. "We've missed you so much!" The blonde grins. It's the following Saturday and the sun is shining brightly. None of the adults are particularly happy about you being there. In fact, they've tried to talk you out of it. You're surprised that they haven't cancelled the whole thing.

"Aw, I've missed you all too, Suzie!"

"Aunty!" You loo up to see Taylor, James and Morgan running across the grass towards you too and soon the two blondes, two brunettes and the red head have merged together.

"Hey, Aunt Si." Chris envelops you in a gentler hug and you grin.

"Hey yourself. If the reason for your joyfullness is my cookies, they're in my bag." There's a joint 'yay!' and Morgan is dispatched to fetch them.

"Mama!" A small path is made for Alia to run to you and you scoop her into your arms when she reaches you.

"Hey baby girl! Oh, I've missed you!"

"I've missed you too, mama!" Alia giggles. You wave across the group at Megan who isn't even trying to force her way through the crowd. She smiles back and folds her arms over her chest, resting them on the small baby bump there. Someone passes a cookie up to Alia and she breaks it in half, handing half to you to eat.

"Thank you, sweetheart. Now, who's up for a game of rounders?" Rounders is a favourite with the kids and takes place outside of the city as there are no fields left inside of it. There's a happy cry from the children and they run down a nearby hill to set it up.

"Wait for me!" Alia calls, wriggling from your grip. Morgan pauses his decent of the hill to wait for her and you smile.

"You aren't playing, are you?" You ask Megan, walking down the hill next to her and she shakes her head. "Good. The last thing I need is for you to hurt yourself. I'm not old enough to be a grandmother, but you are _not _putting that baby in danger."

"Sure thing, mum." Megan smiles, linking her arm through yours. The others are following at a distance and you grit your teeth. "This has to be the first day they've taken off since James was born." Megan adds, as though reading your mind. "They're given the day off as part of their contract, but this the first holiday day that they've taken."

"Please don't get me riled up." You sigh as you reach the bottom of the hill. "Not today." She nods and smiles apologetically, turning to the children. "Okay you ugly lot! Lets get this game set up!" You smile and note that Megan will make a good mother; the kids spring into actions, calling and yelling to each other. "I want you in pairs, on the double!" There's definitely Becker's military command in her and within thirty seconds, the children have split up. "All right, label yourselves one and two. I want ones over on my left, twos on my left. Chop chop!" She then turns to you with a smile. "Are you going to play?"

"It'll make the teams uneven." You point out and Megan shrugs. You sigh and join Molly, Chris, James and Taylor on team one.

"Yay!" James grins happily at you, holding out his arms. You pick him up and grin at him. "Mummy, daddy?" You glance up to see the other parents have arrived. "You can play _if _you're nice to Aunty Si."

"What are you talking about, James?" Abby smiles and steps forwards, reaching for James. "We're always nice to her."

"No!" James tightens his grip around your neck and glares at Abby. "You're all really mean to her and it's unfair. It's bullying!"

"Bullying?" Morgan frowns at Danny. "You taught us that bullying is wrong." You feel terrible as the two boys stand up to their parents.

"It's not-" Danny begins but Jenny cuts him off.

"Oh, for God's sake, Daniel! It _is _bullying and you know it!" She turns her attention to the younger ones who are watching her expectantly. "We'll talk to Aunty Si about this later, yes?" The children exchange looks before turning their attention to Chris.

"We'll hold you to that. You go back on your word and so help me, me and Morgan are moving in with Aunt Si, got it?" The adults not but make no overall move to join you. All but Jenny at any rate. You smile at this. Jenny is the only one who hasn't back stabbed you yet. That you know of anyway. After your split with Becker, Jess and Matt seemed quite friendly. For all of three hours.

"Well, I'm whopping your behind." Jenny grins at you, moving to stand by her son. "You're going down! Down down down!"

"Well, I'm not much of a sportswoman." Jess mutters as she picks her way over to you and slipping off her orange heels. "But I'm sure you cant play whilst holding James in your arms."

"He's the bat." You grin as James' smile disappears and he gapes at you. "I'm joking, kiddo."

Matt eventually wanders over to join you, leaving Abby, Becker and Danny to join the other team. Connor and Megan are left to umpire the game. Megan raises her voice as Morgan steps up to bat. "No killing each other, okay? Drop the bat when you hit and any foul play will result in your murder. Got it?" There's a murmur of agreement. "Good. Now let the games begin!"

**May be another small time skip in the next chapter of about a month. I haven't decided yet.**


	12. The End is Coming

**I am _so _sorry people! I've just started 6th Form and I had a Leader 1 Course and my life just flipped itself on its head. Please forgive me! **

**On another note; some of you are evil! Do I attract readers who want death doom and destruction? Apparently so. Do not fear though, I shall deliver in a few chapters ;)**

**There will be several POV switches in this chapter as we're nearing the climax.**

You roll over and crack open your eyes only to have the fright of your life. "Grief!" You sit up quickly and push the cause of the fright away from you. "Alia, what on _Earth _are you doing?"

"It's Saturday."

"I'm well aware of that. I went to school too you know."

Alia laughs and pokes your tummy. "But it's _today._"

You roll your eyes and decide to play dumb. "Saturday's today, yes. And then its Sunday."

"Muuuuum!"

You laugh and flip Alia onto her back, tickling her to the point where she's threatening to wet herself. "Okay, okay. Go get dressed then." You laugh, releasing her from your clutches. "Go get dress then. They'll be here shortly." Alia laughs and runs from the room towards the bathroom. You groan and flop backwards, burying your face in the pillow.

An hour later and your ordering the clean up of the house. "C'mon you two! Two hours and counting!" Alia's cleaning downstairs with you and Megan's been tasked with cleaning upstairs. Your eldest daughter kept pausing to look at the three baby scans on the mantle so you had to send her upstairs.

"Taylor and Suzie are going to sleep either side of me and Molly's going to sleep opposite me next to Megan and Jeremy. Then the others are going to fill in the gaps. We have sweets, chocolate and popcorn and movies and games and I can't wait!"

You roll your eyes. "There will be ground rules."

"Like no disturbing the evil man next door?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"That's what daddy calls the man next door. He doesn't like him."

"He's met him?"

Alia nods. "He visited him. He didn't like something the man said. Is everything okay?"

"It will be." You head out to the kitchen to check on the cookies, the only thing you seem to be cooking lately. "Make sure your room is clean!" You call back, removing the tray from the oven.

This is what your life has boiled down to; baking cookies everyday and turning your friends', or those who used to be your friends, children against them. It only feel like yesterday that you were being called out to some part of England with a dinosaur problem. Now your a stay-at-home mum, not even a stay-at-home wife.

X

"Are you ready, Alex?" Alex's mother demanded. The boy's mind flickered briefly to the chain around his neck and he nodded. Maybe, when all of this was over, he'd be able to find this 'Becker' character and return the pendant to him. And maybe find out just why it had ended up so far out of time in the first place. "Go!" Alex's mind snapped back to the present, or his version of, and he moved swiftly through the anomaly from one forest to another.

He found himself stood in a forest which looked and smelled different from the ones before. The air wasn't as clean and the trees were too thin and not as green as they were before. There was also a faint sound of something he didn't recognise and wildlife noises were virtually non-existent. "What is this place?" He asked his mother, once she and the dogs had joined them.

"The new forest. About ninety miles from where we need to be." Alex's mother moved off in one direction, closing the anomaly behind her. "We'll need to move quickly. They'll have picked up the anomaly and we need to make sure we're clear of the area within the next hour."

"Hour? I thought you said it was ninety miles away? That would take them over a day at the least!"

"Not in this time period. There are means of transport that you can's begin to imagine." Alex asked no more on the subject

X

The bell rings about an hour early and you frown as you answer it. "Duty calls." Matt offers as an explanation, herding the children inside. Over his shoulder you can a handful of stationary vehicles. Becker, Rosanna and Abby are in the one at the front, Danny in the one behind and soldiers in another three. You roll your eyes and let them in.

"Megan! Alia! People are here!" You hear Alia's happy yell and a moment later she bounds down the stairs and chaos erupts around you. You turn back to Matt expectantly. "Well? The world awaits." You politely close the door in his face and lock it, turning to look at the mass of bodies blocking your way. "Bags into the study!" You call. "Then into the living room!" The younger ones take off straight for the living room, but Chris and Megan stay behind to help you transport the bags. "Call Jeremy and tell him he can come earlier if he wants. No point in him hanging around." Megan smiles as you moved into the living room. "Sit down!" You cry and there's a moment of silence before a mad scramble for the sofa. Chris, Taylor, Suzie, Molly, James, Alia and Morgan all manage to squeeze themselves onto your three-seater sofa. "Thank you. Now, there area few ground rules; no obnoxiously loud noise past nine o'clock, no noise at all past midnight, do not disturb me until nine tomorrow morning, everyone's up by three pm and there's no junk food past one o'clock this morning. Okay?" The all nod. "Good. No go do whatever it is you do."

X

Alex stared at the thing before him. He didn't know what it was, what it was made of or what it did, but it was definitely a thing. "It's a car, Alex." His mother sighed. "Specifically a white van. Get the Hyaenodons into the back and then get in the front." His mother moved around the side and climbed inside, leaving Alex and the creatures outside. Acting on instinct the teenager grabbed the black rectangle on the back of the van and pulled. The larger, white rectangle it was attached to swung open, revealing the dark interior. There was a pile of meat inside, tempting the Hyaenodons. Once there were inside he slammed the rectangle shut and moved around to the other side. He pulled open the second rectangle and scrambled inside. "This is a seatbelt." Alex' mother laughed harshly as she pulled another rectangle over him. "If we crash, it should protect you."

Alex didn't really like the 'should' part of that sentence. He disliked at almost as much as the van. It was loud and had a weird smell to it. It went way too fast, covering twice as much ground as he could cover in an hour.

Before long they joined a long, wide strip of grey with a few other white vans. Alex's mother threw words at him as they went. "Anything that doesn't resemble a van is a car. Except for the things with two wheels; they're motorbikes. We're driving on a motorway which is a big road. Oh, an on your right, the big mass of black cars? One of them holds the man your going to kill." Alex peered out of the van, trying to catch a face of of anyone inside one of the cars moving in the opposite direction. They were moving to fast for him to even count how many cars there were.

"Will all of them need to die?"

Alex's mother glanced over at him. "Whoever gets in your way."

**Okay, so this doesn't really make up for my absence, but we're onto the final arc in the next chapter :)**


	13. Crashing to a Halt

Matt collects the kids the following day, informing you that Becker will be round later to discuss something with you. His tone suggests that it's not going to be a social call. Whilst Megan's in the nursery, adding the final layer of paint with Jeremy and Alia's in her room playing with her toys you prepare yourself for the worst. You and Becker haven't held a conversation, civil or otherwise, since the James incident about a month ago. If he's talking to you willingly it can't be good.

Megan and Jeremy head to the shops about three, taking Alia with them and the promise of a new outfit for you. Half an hour later, as though timed, Becker rolls up to the front door. You watch him through the living room window as he opens the gate onto the short stone path up to the front door. He glares at 'the evil man's house before looking over to the window. The two of you lock gazes and, for the briefest moment in history, you could swear that his lips twist upwards in a smile. It's gone before you can twitch and he's trying the front door. He steps inside as you head into the kitchen. "Before you go ape-shit on me, do you want a drink?"

"No, but thank you. Are you going to come out of the kitchen to talk or do you want a wall between us?"

"That depends if you're going to keep your temper in check." You retort, pouring boiling water into your mug and heading through into the living room. You try to catch his gaze but he wont look at you. "What can I help you with? You come to yell at me some more?"

Becker looks at you this time, almost hurt. "What makes you think I'd yell?"

"Since the split we've spoken only a handful of times and you've ended up yelling each time. Why should now be any different?"

"Look, this isn't even about us."

"Is it ever?" The words are out of your mouth before you can stop them and Becker visibly recoils.

"This is about the anomaly alert from yesterday."

"Oh? What happened?"

"There were footprints at the site, fresh ones, and paw prints. Connor and Abby believe they belong to five or six Hyaenodons." You shudder. The last time you came across them was at Jenny's first wedding, a lifetime ago. "A van was also stolen, along with a pound of fresh meat."

"So..."

"We believe that people brought the creatures through the anomaly."

"Okay, but isn't this stuff classified? I mean, surely you shouldn't be telling me this?"

"I wouldn't be, if it wasn't for the fact that this rubbing was found there." Becker holds out a sheet of paper and you take it gingerly, as though it may bite you. You look down at it and blink.

"'Becker, with love,'" You whisper your name before looking up at him. "The pendant I gave you on our first anniversary."

"Exactly. The one I lost to that terror bird when Danny came back, remember?"

"Of course I do, but how did it end up at the anomaly site?"

"I don't know and I'm not sure I want to. The point is that someone came through the anomaly with knowledge about the two of us. Lester's more than a little concerned and he wants to station men here for the next few nights."

"That's not necessary." You say hurriedly. "This street's one of the safest in London, you know that. One of the few streets left in the country with a functioning neighbourhood watch."

"Regardless, the government wants to make sure their best PR is safe."

You laugh harshly. "Right. And I'm coping with the split. Look, we're fine and we don't need any soldiers lurking around outside in the dead of night."

"They wouldn't be 'lurking around'."

"I'm _not _having protection! None of us need it!"

Becker glares at you for a moment before the front door swings open. "Mama? We're ba- Dada!" Alia launches herself from the hall to Becker's arms in three strides. Megan sticks her head round the door with a worried look. You motion her in. Becker kisses her forehead and nods civilly at Jeremy.

"So, what's going on?" Megan asks carefully, running a hand over her stomach.

Becker replies before you can get a word in. "I'm staying the night."

X

Megan and Alia are finding the whole situation a little uncomfortable and so are you. Megan sent Jeremy back home so he didn't have to deal with it. Becker's refused to leave and you retreated to your room shortly after an awkward dinner so you two didn't end up fighting. You can hear Megan and Alia talking in the formers room but you don't mind, even though the clock shows half one in the morning. You're travelling down to see Rob again in nine hours, but you can't get to sleep. The thought that Becker is only downstairs is keeping you awake.

Eventually you get to your feet and grab your sleeping jumper and one of Becker's old jumpers, heading downstairs. He hadn't brought anything with him to sleep in and was currently camped on the couch in his uniform. You push the door open and a bright-light is shone into your eyes. You hold your hands up in a surrender and the light moves. "Do you _want _me to shoot you?" Becker demands, moving back to the sofa.

"I would like to point out that _you _are the one camped on my sofa. I brought you this." You throw his jumper at him, chuckling as the sleeve hits him in the face. "I forgot that Matt hadn't taken it."

"Wondered where that had gone." He smiles, removing his shirt. You can't help but stare before the skin's covered again.

"I-I'll see you tomorrow." You stammer. Like Hell are you going to sleep tonight.

X

You're close to missing your train later in the morning after Alia refused to let you out of her hug. She's now sitting on Becker's hip as the doors close and the train moves from the platform. It'll only take you three hours to get to Chepstow and you're grateful for that. Rob called you up out of the blue yesterday, begging for you to come down and help to plan his proposal to Amy. Whilst thrilled, you're also a little annoyed that he didn't give you more time. However you _are _glad that he only managed to get one ticket and Becker isn't able to tag along. That's the last thing you'd need.

You settle into your seat by the window, the seat next to you currently empty, and pick up your book. It's one that you've read so many times the pages are nearly falling out, but you still love it About an hour into your journey and you've just passed Slough. That's when it happens.

There's a squeal of breaks and the train jolts. Your body jerks forwards and your forehead smacks the seat infront of you. Then, in a squeal of breaks and seemingly in slow motion, the worst happens; the train crashes.

The carriage slams into the one infront of you, crumples and then the back follows suit. Glass and metal flies everywhere as it tips to the right, falling from the tracks and slamming into the ground. You're thrown from your seat into the widow to your right, catching your waist on the armrest as you fall. You land on the couple who were sitting across the isle, vaguely aware of a dull throb in your side, head and right arm. Your vision swims as the cabin begins to fill with smoke. A man who's landed next to you gets up and yells something to you, but you can't hear a word he says. He glances round in a panic before mouthing 'sorry' and scooping you up into his arms and stumbling through the wreck. The smoke is getting thicker and you can't breathe as your vision morphs itself into something unexpected.

The last thing you see before you black out, is Becker's face swimming before your eyes.

**This was unexpected as I wrote this chapter without any planning. Would people be willing to read the next chapter, or at least the first half, from Becker's POV and see him tortured a little?**


	14. Strange things are happening

Becker was in the midst of biting his thumbnail and being bored out of his mind when his mobile rang. He felt a small pang of something he hadn't felt in months when he saw Your name flashing on the screen. The ringtone always made him smile. Megan had changed them all to songs from her favourite Disney movies when she was twelve. He hadn't the heart to change them back again. "Is something wrong?" He asked, picking up the phone before the first three bars of 'Strange Things' could finish. "Are you ' '?" Becker didn't recognise the voice on the other end of the line. "Who is this and what are you doing with that phone?" "I'm Doctor Julius from King's College. You need to come to the hospital immediately." "What's happened?" A rising sense of dread was beginning to run through his body. Maybe the ringtone was fitting for the situation. "I don't think it's a g-" "_Tell me _what has happened." Becker felt calm wash over him, a cool, icy feeling spreading from his chest outwards. The only time he'd felt that before was when he'd come home to find You kidnapped shortly before going into labour. "Are you Si's husband?" Becker replied without thinking. "Yes." "She... There's been an accident." "Oh my god... The train." The silence confirmed it. Becker didn't know what had happened to the train, but he had a pretty good idea. "Keep her alive until I get there!" Becker hung up, his heart in his throat, and dialled Matt before taking the stairs two at a time. "What? You kill her already?" "Turn the news on." Becker could already hear it, along with Megan's muffled sobs, from his eldest daughters room. "Holy crap." Matt breathed. "Tell me she was not on that train." "..." 'Fuck. Jess! Jess, She was on that train. What are you going to do?' Becker shouldered open Megan's door, glad to see that Alia wasn't inside. Megan was sat on her bed, knees tucked up against her cheat and rocking back and forth. "I'm going to take Megan up to the hospital and run Alia to Abby's." He wrapped an arm around Megan's shoulder, turning the telly off and pulling her from the room. 'Tell Abby what happened and get her to meet me there.' He hung and nudged Megan towards the stairs. 'Alia! Abby's offered for you to go round! Get your coat!' He heard the front door open and close. 'Why am I going to aunt Abby's?' The younger girl questioned. Becker didn't reply for a moment. 'She just hasn't seen you in a while.' 'She saw me last week.' 'Alia! Stop arguing with me! You are going to Abby's and that is final!' The young girl looked up at her father, blinked and hurried down the stairs. The emotion she saw in his eyes scared her and she didn't want to hand around for when it all blew off. She tried not to pay attention to the fact that her big sister was sobbing quietly in the front seat, her fingers flying over her phone at such a rate she doubted the receiver, probably Jeremy, could make the words out. Her father's hands were clenched so tightly over the top of the wheel that it looked as though his knuckles were going to break through the skin. Abby was waiting outside on the curb for them, her face tear-streaked and her make-up running. Alia didn't question it as she climbed out with a soft goodbye and took her aunts hand. Becker pulled away from the curb and seemed to want to break every traffic law on the way to the hospital. When he pulled up and parked, surprisingly well considering everything that was running through his head, he wasn't surprised to find Jeremy waiting for them. He was almost relieved in a way; it meant he didn't have to focus completely on Megan. It may be a harsh thought, but it was the truth. He could barely contain his own emotions and had no hope of controlling the already erratic ones of his daughter. "Waiting room five." Jeremy informed him as they met each other. "All the families are in there, waiting for news." The trio made their way down the halls at a quick pace.

A few people looked up when they entered, but they weren't entering through the doors which led to the main part of the hospital so nobody really cared. There was barely enough room to sit down (The train had had six carriages, not including the driver's cab, and at least half of the passengers had to have been injured) yet they managed to find a few empty seats.

Becker didn't even bother to try and get information out of anyone or go in search of it. Doctor Neno, the doctor who had served the ARC since it's set up in 2007. Unfortunately he had retired almost five years ago and Becker was left in the same place as everyone else. To occupy himself he looked at the people in the room, trying to work out who they were there for. A young couple opposite him, barely old enough to be out of education, were waiting for someone older than them; a parent or a sibling. They looked stressed but not too worried. Maybe they knew their relative wasn't in a critical condition. There were a few people crying and others looking numb. Becker came to learn that if the doctor or nurse called your family name out from the door it was a good sign. If they managed to make eye-contact with you and motion you out you may want to start worrying you. If they entered the room and came to get you quietly, it was a very bad sign. Becker was almost dreading that the third option was going to happen.

It took nearly two hours until a tall man with thick black hair entered the waiting room. Becker knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that this was Doctor Julius. The Doctor didn't open his mouth to call him forwards, but neither did he make any move to enter the room further. They locked gazes and he left the room again. Becker got to his feet and helped Megan from the room with the help of Jeremy. "H. Becker?" Doctor Julius questioned and Becker nodded. "Now, are you Megan or Alia?"

"Megan." Megan replied shakily. "Is my mum okay?"

Doctor Julius glanced at Megan's baby bump and then to Becker who motioned for him to talk. "She's just returned from surgery. It took three hours and I wont lie; I thought it would take much longer than that and I wasn't sure she'd make it. She has severe concussion and a bleed on the brain. She has a broken hip and a dislocated right wrist. Her right ankle was also badly broken. She landed on her right side on the fall. Her ribs also took the brunt of the force."

"But how is she _now_?" Becker demanded.

Doctor Julius sighed. "We've set her bones and bound her ribs..."

"_Continue._" Becker growled.

"The bleed on her brain was extensive. We've managed to stop it, but there will be some side effects. If there aren't, well, she'd the damned most luckiest woman on this planet."

"C-Can I see her?"

"She's not conscious yet, and probably wont be for another hour or so. She's in the ICU so you can't touch her."

"B-But-"

"When she wakes up she'll be moved to a ward. Until then, you can see her through the glass."

"Where?"

"Third door on the left, fourth on the right."

Becker watched as his daughter and her boyfriend hurried down the corridor, following the Doctor's instructions. "What aren't you telling them?"

"Captain, I brought her to this hospital. The last words she said to me were 'Tell Hillary I'm sorry.'. Captain, I didn't ever expect her to come off that table. Just her waking up will be a miracle in itself. I don't know what she's sorry for and if you should be sorry too, but I know for a fact that she wasn't wearing a wedding band. It may not be my place to say but if I were you, I'd start hoping she'll wake up and you can put things right."

"Thank you, Doctor. Will you find me when she wakes? I need to phone my youngest."

"Wont you see her now?"

Becker bit his lip. "Not yet. I will when she wakes up." With that, Becker turned and made for the exit, leaving the Doctor to shake his head.

What he said next was said to an empty corridor. "Then you may never see her alive again."

**Okay, I _know _it's short, but I'll make up for it in the next chapter. Or rather, Becker will :)**


	15. Who Knew

"Vitals... Luck... Dead... Poor thing... Captain... Grandmother... Dead... Can't believe..." The words filter through the layer of blackness clouding your mind. The words are echoed and hazy but you can still make them out. "Mrs... move finger..." You try to move a part of your body but nothing happens. You slip off the edge and your hearing fails again.

The second time you wake you can make out more of the words. They aren't as hazy but there's still bits missing. "Seven... no damage... family is... if he would just..."

The third time you wake up you manage to make out one full sentence; "Her daughters are here again." You force yourself to move your index finger and you pray that they notice it. Before you can find out however, you fall back off the edge.

On your forth attempt at waking up you're able to crack your eyes open ever so slightly. You find a dark haired man in blue scrubs stood at the end of your bed, looking at a clipboard. He glances up and nearly drops the chart. "Mrs Becker!" He moves swiftly to the side of your bed and presses his pager. "Can you hear me?" You nod. "Can you say something? Anything at all. First thing which comes to your mind."

You aren't sure _why _it's the first thing which comes to your mind but it is. "Hilary?"

The man smiles. "He's on his way. Visiting hours are in two hours so he'll be along then with Megan and Alia. We just need to run a few tests before you can be moved to a ward where you can meet your family."

It turns out that 'a few tests' means an MRI and a CT scan and seven different blood tests followed by a urine test. Between each test you're brought back to the ICU. The Doctor, who you quickly learn is called Mac Julius, is the one responsible for saving your life. He also pulled you through the surgery and has been the one looking after you for the nine days you've been unconscious. Once all the test results have been completed and you've been given the all clear he unhooks most of the monitors from you. "You need to keep the IV in you at all times. You'll be wired up to a different heart monitor once we get you to your new room. You wont need a breathing tube but you will need a drip to give you painkillers. With any luck you wont be in hospital that much longer. This will, of course, depend on what happens to your brain."

"My brain?"

He gives you a look. "You haven't noticed?"

"Noticed _what_?"

"Your words. They're slurred together."

"No they're not."

"Yes they are. And you're talking slower. Focus on you speech when you're talking. Listen to yourself." You give him a quizzical look. "Recite the names of your children and focus on your speech."

"Megan Travina Becker, Ben Thomas Becker, Alia Hannah Becker." You frown to find that, when you focus, you realise that your speech is slowed and slurred. "Why didn't I realise that?"

Doctor Julius smiles. "The speech part of your brain and the part of your brain which lets you recognise things like your speech may not be connecting properly. It wont have a huge impact on your life and you can fix it with a few months of therapy." He removes the breaks from your bed and pulls the IV drip to the bedside. "Can you hold this for me?"

You nod and take it on your hand. "How bad is it?"

"Your words and slurring into one but they're still easy to make out. Unless anything else shows up within the next few days you could be one of the luckiest people on Earth." You make the stupid mistake of asking what the results of the crash could've been as he wheels you down the hall. The short of it is that you should be brain-dead. Other people from the crash are (a total of 5) some people are dead (a total of 29). Nobody escaped unharmed. At least half of the passengers have been through surgery and ten of the dead 29 died on the table. There are still a total of 15 people in medical-induced comas and you're the third one to wake. "You have a few minutes before your family gets here so I'll run a few more tests." Doctor Julius sets the breaks down on the bed and shines a light into your eyes. "Are all your memories in tact?"

"As far as I know."

"Who's Ben?" He glances at you. "I know who he is, but can you remember exactly?"

"Ben's my son. Or rather, he was. He was killed shortly after his first birthday."

"Do you remember what killed him?" You pause. What did Becker tell him? You never saw the 'official' report. You try to reply but thankfully you're interrupted.

"Mummy!" Alia hurls herself across the room at you and is up on your bed, arms around your neck before you can sit upright.

Doctor Julius laughs. "I'll be back with your official report later. Captain. Miss." He nods to Becker and Megan who you can just see over the top of Alia's blonde head.

"Hey to you too sweetheart." You kiss the top of he hair and shift her so she's not sat on your screaming ribs. "It's a Monday, shouldn't you be in school?"

"Daddy said we didn't have to go."

"He did?" You raise an eyebrow at Becker who's leaning against the closed door. "Well I hope he's been tutoring you then."

"I have." Megan speaks up. "Me and Jeremy."

You smile. "That's my girl. Now come and give me a hug." You hold out your free arm and she moves to your side.

"Mama, your voice is funny." Alia giggles.

"Love you too honey." You mutter and Becker smirks.

"At least now she's 100% weird." You can't tell if he's saying that as a joke or not. The wonders of an emotionally retarded husband, right?

"But you are okay, right?" Megan asks, looking concerned.

"Of course. How have you all been though? I've slept the past nine days."

Alia recounts the past nine days, dropping Becker in a pile of crap. She spent the first night at Abby's then the following three sitting on the sofa all night watching films and eating ice cream. The last four were spent just eating. Neither her or Megan have been to school all week and Becker's let them get away with everything up to, and thankfully they haven't committed it, murder. "Are you recounting your week or trying to get your father into trouble?"

Alia grinned. "He said he'd 'deal with Medusa's wrath when she wakes up'."

"Medusa?" You glance up at Becker who's still in the same place as before. "You called me _Medusa_?"

"Nice one, Alia." Megan rolls her eyes. "Look, I don't want to play matchmaker but you two need to talk. _You really _need to get this sorted." Megan gives you a pointed look. "And _you _don't have an excuse after your behaviour. Let us know when it's safe for us to come back. Okay?" Megan waits until both you and Becker have nodded before scooping Alia off the bed and setting her on the floor. "Food? There's a Costas down the road."

"See you soon, mummy!" Alia waves and grabs Megan's hand, pulling her from the room. Becker sidesteps to allow them to leave. Once the door closes an awkward silence settles over you. You hadn't realised how much your head was hurting.

"Don't suppose you have any paracetamol on you?" You ask, leaning back against your pillows.

"You think I'd let you self-medicate if I did?"

"Becker, this is a hospital. I'm in pain."

"Exactly. Hospital." You hear him walk towards you and a moment later a fuzzy feeling flows through you. "Better?"

You hum. "Excuse me if I don't appear to be paying attention to the meaningful conversation we're about to have."

"What makes you think that?"

"You're smiling at me." You crack an eye open to find that he is, indeed, smiling down at you. "You haven't smiled at me in years. What changed."

Becker laughs. "What didn't?"

"I was nearly killed and you decide to talk to me now? What, afraid of having to look after the girls on you own or something? You can't seriously expect me to believe that you want to have this heart-to-heart purely because of that? You ditched me after Ben and then after Alia. I haven't mattered to you for the last fifteen years, so why would I now?"

"Woman, would you just stop talking?"

"_Excuse _me?" You struggle to sit upright and glare at him. "No! You don't get the right to tell me to be quiet you pathetic, useless, son of a bi-"

You're cut off from your rant when his lips cover yours in the sweetest, most passionate kiss you've had in _years_.

**Well, that took _me _by surprise! I wasn't going to have this happen until the end, but then again readers and reviews can make things change :) Thoughts? **


	16. Over The Hill

**Hello again, strangers! So sorry about the lack of updates but my school work is crazy. Becker isn't off the hook yet though. Not yet. Soon though. Maybe.**

"Some people are jerks. You of all people should know that." Jess is sat by your bedside a week later, feet tucked under her in the oversized armchair. "At least you know he does still have some kind of feelings for you, even if he is completely incapable of showing them."

"You know, I think it would just best if we back-stabbed Becker to Hell and back." Abby's in the chair on the other side of your bed, a book resting in her lap. "I think that's all You want, right?" She asks you and you laugh.

"Please. Though I'd rather not die of an aneurysm at any point tonight!" Jess and Abby chuckle, the latter kicking off her shoes and swinging her feet up onto your bed.

She grins. "So. The kiss. Bitch it to hell and back."

You worry your bottom lip between your teeth. "There has to be _something _bad you can say about it." Jess prompts.

"It was _exactly _how I remember it, but there was something off about it. Maybe the twelve years he spent separating himself from me have changed him." The last part is said dripping in sarcasm.

"Well, that could play a part." The three of you turn towards the door to see Megan leaning against the frame.

"Megan? How long have you been there?" You demand and she rolls her eyes.

"Mum, you sound like you're talking about me or something. I'm nearly seventeen and I'm having a baby. Not much you can say is going to get to me. Besides, if you're bitching about dad then I want in." She shuts the door behind her and perches on the end of your bed, folding her legs under her and resting her hands on her bump. "So. Dad. What's he done right recently? By the way, we all know what happened. Well Jeremy, Chris and I know what's going on. The others are blissfully ignorant about his."

"How can they be blissfully ignorant with Becker around?" You frown. "He's like a rampaging bull on his good days."

Megan laughs and the mental image you present. "He's been holed up away from the rest of us since the other day. We're counting our blessings, as should you."

"What's a blessing about this?" You ask, genuinely interested. Abby and Jess also look interested in what Megan has to say.

"Well, dad's finally getting over himself. I don't know if you ever had plans of working thing out with him, but that could be a possibility in a few years. Maybe twenty or so."

You smile and shake your head. "Not something for you to concern yourself over, Megan."

She shrugs. "I know. Oh, Lester wanted me to give you this. I've booked myself in for another scan whilst I'm here though, so I'll be back in a while." She hands you a blank envelope and slides off the bed, waving goodbye.

You open the envelope and unfold the small letter inside, reading it quickly.

_Thank you for not dying on us. Becker really would have been too much to handle then. I may be evoking danger and death on all of my staff, but I would like to request that you come back to the ARC for a day once you're discharged. I need to run a few things by you which concern you but that I've only just learnt about.  
Yours,  
Lester_

You fold the note back up and slip it between the pages of the book on your bedside table. "Do we want to know what it's about?" Jess asks, trying to keep herself from prying.

"He just wanted to talk to me, that's all. I'll head in once I'm discharged."

"When will that be?" Abby shifts in her seat. "Becker doesn't seem to think that'll be any time within the next few weeks."

You roll your eyes. "According to my lovely Doctor, I should be out of here by the end of next week."

"Eight days? Is that really long enough for you to heal?"

"Broken bones have a set healing period time, no matter whether I'm here or home. As for my head, I'm not going any more crazy. If it wasn't for the fact that they want to see if they can lower my morphine dosage then I'd probably be out of here sooner."

"Where will you stay? You're place isn't exactly ideal with the stairs." Jess points out. You smile sheepishly.

"I was going to ask one of you two. You both have lifts and live on one floor. Can I borrow a spare room?"

"I've got one." Abby offers. "James and Molly would love to have you stay for a while. What about Megan and Alia? Will they be staying too?"

"They'll have to stay with Becker. It's not fair for us all to live at your place while they've got another home. I obviously can't stay with him due to his lift being out of order. I'm sure he'll understand."

Surprisingly, he does. You're discharged ten days later, a little later than planned, and you head home with Connor and Abby. You've managed to worm your way out of the wheelchair but you're stuck with crutches for about a month. Danny drops Molly and James off an hour after you've settled in and the first thing they do is grab permanent markers and scrawl over your cast. You've gotten most people to sign your cast, some of it not so polite.

_Thanks for not dying on us. ~ Lester_

_Get well soon, mama ~ Alia xxxxxxxx_

_You go years without hurting yourself, then you challenge my health streak! Nice one! :D ~ Danny_

_Get well soon mum! ~ Megan xx_

_Can I send you all the paperwork Lester sends me which our replacement messes up? ~ Jenny_

_Woot! You're messing with Becker emotions! ~ Abby_

_Don't listen to aunt Abby. Uncle Becker doesn't have/is incapable of emotions! ;) ~ Chris _

_Contrary to popular belief, I'm glad you're not dead.~ Becker _

_Get better soon! ~ Morgan_

_Does this mean you'll make lots of cookies now? ~ Taylor_

_COOKIES! OMNOMNOMNOM! ~ Suzie p.s. Get better soon!_

_You're okay with doing my chores, right? ~ Connor_

_Hope you heal soon, Miss X! ~ Jeremy_

_At least your cast is white and wont clash with your shoes! ~ Jess _

_Congratulations with winding Becker up more. And living. ~ Matt_

_Hope you get wel ~ Molly_

_Get better soon! :) ~ James_

All things considering, the messages could've been a lot worse. You spend most of your evening on the sofa talking with Abby whilst Molly and James do their homework. Once they've headed to bed and Abby and Connor have retired early you get gingerly to your feet. You make your way slowly to the spare bedroom, not in any particular hurry. Not yet, anyway.

X

"That's her?" Alex leant back in the passenger seat of the van. He'd only seen a brief glimpse of the injured woman, but she didn't look like a threat to anyone.

"Yes. Don't let her appearance fool you. She's a snake in disguise." His mother's voice was laced with the venom of one as she continued to glare at the block of flats, long after they'd gone. An ageing man pulls up a few hours later, two small children in two. He disappears inside for a few minutes before returning without the children and leaving again. "He's getting on a bit." Alex's mother smirked. "He used to be full of energy apparently. I never actually met him. He was stuck in the past whilst I was working alongside the traitors."

"What's his name?" Alex asked curiously. It could be a long shot, but that man may be the 'Becker' on his chain.

"Quinn. And that's all you need to know about him. The more you know, the less will you'll have to finally end this."

"You keep saying that. That _I _must end it. But why can't you? You know so much more than me. You have more of a grudge against them than I do. Why must it be me who settles your past with them?"

"Because." Alex's mother snapped. This was the only answer he ever got, but not tonight. This time his mother smiled wryly and explained herself. "Because it's the ultimate punishment. You wont know what they do, but it will be the worst punishment for that woman and her husband. To be killed by their mistake? They wont live long enough to regret it.

**Yikes this is short! I've uploaded a Transformers story and a Harry Potter story in the hope that it'll spur me to finish this story. Please leave a comment! **


	17. Boxes and Letters

**This hasn't got long left to go and then it's finished! Probably eight or so chapters at the most, although that may stretch to ten. Bit of angst in this chapter.**

You're back home a month after your release. Molly and James are upset that you're leaving but you're secretly relieved to be back somewhere where you can escape from people. You have a feeling Megan and Alia will be happy to escape Becker in a few days when they're back with you. As it is you have another two days on your own. You can navigate the stairs okay now so you take a chance and decide to clear out the wardrobe. You need the bathroom stool to be able to reach the shelves but you're soon neck-deep in old clothes.

There's the odd dress and several jumpers which don't suit you, no longer fit or you don't plan on wearing again. You're forced to throw out several jeans when you realise the back of them is nearly see through and there are some old formal heels in a box that you never plan to set eyes on again.

There a few files on the very top shelf that need to be removed and you struggle to reach them. You frown as your fingers hit a cardboard box on though. You cant see that far back so it has to be something of Becker's; you've never stored anything back there as you could never reach it before.. You use the tips of your fingers to pull it off the shelf, almost falling back off the stool with the sudden extra weight.

It isn't actually cardboard but wood. It looks like something from the carvings store across the city. You carry it to the bed and dump it on the mattress, sitting down next to it and opening the lid. You feel guilty about prying into Becker's stuff, but he hasn't asked for it back so it mustn't be important. The box, about two foot by one foot and one foot deep, has something across the top of it to prevent you from seeing the contents. On the red velvet cover is a folded piece of paper. You pick it up and can just make out Becker's handwriting through the paper. You flip it open and your heart stops.

_My beautiful wife,  
I have no doubt that you will find this soon and when you do, I will no longer be there. Why I am not there is unclear to me yet; maybe I've died or maybe you've finally kicked me out as I always knew you would. No matter the reason, I hope you and our daughters are safe.  
Chances are, if you've kicked me out, which is what's probably happened, the contents of this box are going to take you by surprise. I nearly threw it out, but you deserve to know the truth. If you do look through the contents of this box, please look through it all and reserve your judgement until you have finished.  
I started putting this box together when Alia was five so there's five years of stuff waiting for you.  
I will always love you,  
Your husband,  
Hilary Becker  
xoxo_

You fold the letter back up and set it to one side, more than a little confused. 'I will always love you'? What's that about? You and Becker haven't shown any signs of affection since Alia was conceived. You lift up the red tray and your jaw drops. Just by looking inside you know that Becker has put a lot of time into the box. Without touching or moving anything you can see a teething rattle, two dozen photos of your children, photos of the ARC team and of your childhood and Megan's old sleeping suit. You take a deep breath and reach for the first item; a bundle of clothes. You spread them out on the bed sheet and gape at them. You recognise each of them and could name the places they came from; a green blanket with 'Master Becker' and a red blanket with 'Mistress Becker' from Rob, baby boots from Vikki, a pink and white spotted jumpsuit that belonged to Alia, again from Rob. There's also a blue jumper with a dinosaur on the front which belonged to Ben. You fold them up neatly and set them to one side, organising them into piles. You reach back into the box and pull out a stack of photos. They're old and slightly faded. They're all pregnancy photos from 2011, before Megan and Ben were born. Back when you were happy and still in love. You flick through them, noticing that you're in everyone. There's photos from Abby and Connor's wedding, days out, in the ARC and at home. Becker's in some, but they're mostly you and the ARC team. There's even one of you and Lester. You pull out more photos next, ones of Megan and Ben. On the back of each photo is the name of the person in it and the date it was taken. You sort through the photos and organise them into dates, the oldest on the top. You refuse to look at anything else until you've sorted them out. Photos of Megan and Ben, then only Megan, Alia as a newborn, Alia and Megan, Becker and the girls, you and the girls, a family photo. You count over two hundred photos, each of them dated and titled. You set them to the side when your done and sort back through the box.

Becker's saved all of the 'important' clothing from when the children were younger. Various outfits that Megan wore to weddings or other important events and her favourite outfit which she used to scream blue murder when it was taken off. There are various baby boots for all three of them, each item causing you to choke up a little bit more. The tears don't start to flow until you reach into the box and blindly pull out the last item of clothing. You haven't been looking at the contents of the box until you pull it out. You wish you'd seen this coming; it's Ben's dinosaur suit.

The suit that he wanted to wear the day he was taken away from you. The suit he lived in for a month and made you promise to let him wear once it was washed. The one thing which makes you break down in tears.

You fold it carefully and tuck it under the rest of Ben's outfits. You glance into the box, not wanting any more surprises. The only thing left in it is your white wedding album. You have most of the photos memorised, but you pick it up and begin to slowly flick through the photos anyway. At the back you find a second letter. You aren't sure you want to read it but you open it anyway.

_Love is words that cannot be written  
Feelings that cannot be explained  
Love is that moment when you cannot speak  
because so much wants to be said  
Love is when you cannot imagine your life any differently  
Love is friendship that cannot be broken  
Love is two souls wrapped in one  
Love hurts so wonderfully you cannot let go_

_But I did let you go. I let you go because I couldn't cope with seeing you break a little more every day and know I had done nothing to stop what had happened. I shut myself off and brought up the walls which you broke down to keep myself from breaking. Had I known it would've caused you more pain I wouldn't have done it. By the time I realised it was too late. I had lost you and I couldn't get you back.  
I am truly sorry for what I have done and the pain I have caused you.  
I will love you forever, though you may not believe it and I may not show it.  
Hilary. _

_xx_


	18. Returning Home

**Okay, so I lost my muse and motivation for this story. 'Primeval: New World' is ****_dreadful _****and is providing bugger all in the inspiration department. The rest of this story is dedicated to looking-for-a-big-adventure who actually made the effort to kick my butt in gear by contacting me through tumblr :) **

_Forgive the informality of the letter but your replacement is useless. _

Reads the opening line of the letter you received through the post earlier that morning. Several months have passed since the train incident and in that time you have seen nothing of or heard nothing from Becker. Megan is now half way through her seventh month of pregnancy, the nursery is completely redecorated and you're back on friendly terms with most of the Alpha response team. (All save for Rosanna)

_It would be greatly appreciated if you could come back to the ARC for a few hours to tie up the loose ends Miss Rosanna is incapable of doing herself. I would delve into more depth on the subject but that would endanger the life of the next intern to cross my path. _

_Please come. _

_J. Lester_

You roll your eyes at the typical Lester fashion. He may have aged but he's still the same he was nearly twenty years ago. It's a quiet Saturday and Alia has been begging for you to take her somewhere all day. It's the last place you want to go but it looks like you have to visit the ARC. You summon your daughters, explain about the necessary paperwork and grab the car keys. Twenty minutes later and you're all ready to go.

Your ARC card is out of date by fifteen years and Megan and Alia don't have one. Nonetheless the guards on duty wave you through. They're old by ARC standard, having probably been under Becker's command for ten years. A good majority of his soldiers from your time are long gone, either dead, resigned, let go or missing in action. Your reputation seems to proceed you though and two more meet you in the garage.

"Boss is expecting you, ma'am." One of them states as you, Megan and Alia draw near. "He requests that Megan and Alia go to the staff room to meet the other children."

"Why are they all here?"

The soldier shrugs. "I don't ask those kind of questions, ma'am. This way please."

You part ways at the elevator, Megan and Alia following the other soldier to a smaller lift and disappearing from sight.

The hub has changed very little since your last visit. The only difference is that Jess' chair is now blue, rather than red. She greets you happily, stress far more prominent on her face. "Thanks Jimmie." She waves the soldier away, motioning to Lester's office. "Go right in, he's expecting you."

You make an off-hand comment about her being his secretary now before entering the small, glass office. "Welcome back." Lester states without looking up from his work.

"You have my house under surveillance?" you ask, seating yourself on one of the plastic chars opposite his desk.

He shakes his head. "Jess does. She's been eager for your visit."

"Some things never change." You smile thinly. "What do you need me to do?"

"It won't take long; I know how you feel about being back here. All you need to do is sign a few sheets, file a few things and take a quick inventory and you can be on your way."

You arch an eyebrow. "And why am I doing all of this? Isn't that the job of the delightful Miss Foster?"

Lester laughs icily. "She's overrun with paperwork from the botched anomaly jobs. The Alpha team's been running through field training for the last month, leaving the Beta, Gamma and Delta teams to deal with the anomalies. If we ever have to send the Omega team out then the world may just end."

"Why don't you start sending small groups out with the Alpha team?" you suggest, your old job at the ARC momentarily taking over your personality.

"It's an option, I suppose." Lester smirks at you, noticing you character lapse. "As for the armoury, Miss Foster is banned from it. She spends more time flirting than taking inventory. Becker and Matt have been on basic training and I just wanted an excuse to get you back in the building. The team's falling apart and if you can't help put it back together then maybe Megan and Alia can."

You smile. "I appreciate your honesty. Have you got the things for me to sign?" Lester nods, sliding several sheets over to you. They're mainly PR related with one or two application forms that need a PR's signature. Once your done Lester hands you the inventory sheet. "Once you're done you can leave again."

You nod, getting to your feet and heading toward the armoury.

It's almost nostalgic to be walking from Lester's office to the armoury again. It feels like several lifetimes ago when you almost ran down the corridors to locate Becker. You were so much younger then and the idea of children was foreign. Now they're your life and you're much older. People still smile and greet you as you walk although they are more surprised at your appearance than happy to see you. Soldiers patrol the corridors in pairs or trios, an unusual sight to you. You don't know what, if anything, could have happened to cause such a thing but they're almost a welcome sight. Because of this it means the armoury is empty by the time you arrive.

It's as dark as ever, each weapon carefully polished, loading and stored. It's easy to take an inventory of all the weapons and you even have enough time to examine the newer ones that you've never seen before. You soon find one that you prefer over the original EMDs; it's as small as the average pistol and just as light in your hands. You pick it up, testing its weight in your hands, lifting it and turning as though to fire it. You nearly drop it when you find Becker stood three feet behind you. You glare at him. "Smart move." You set the pistol back down, casing it and picking up the inventory sheet. "Can't you make any noise?"

"It's not my fault that you're out of practice." He replies, moving to stand next to you.

"Hm. You're going grey." You smirk. It's true; the roots of his hair are just starting to lighten. It's hardly surprising considering all he's gone through.

"Thanks for pointing that out." He rolls his eyes.

"You're the one still working here. How are you even still alive, anyway? You've got to be one of the luckiest people alive."

Becker shrugs, picking up the weapon you just set down. "Too tough to eat. Raptor tried it a few months ago. It didn't work out well for him." He holds the weapon out to you and you raise an eyebrow but take it from him.

"What, want me to finish the job?"

Your ex-husband rolls his eyes. "No, want you to show me how you hold it. Your hearings gone but it doesn't mean your aim has to."

You huff, lifting the weapon. Your grip has hardly changed (brandishing the rolling-pin in previous years was obviously a useful thing to do.) Becker doesn't really have to correct your hold. "I'm not completely useless." You smirk. "Unlike my replacement seems to be." You hand back the weapon and the inventory list. "Have you seen your daughter?"

"I saw Alia's arm. Whether or not Taylor has succeeded in severing it is another matter."

You laugh lightly, happy to not be arguing with him for a change. "Why are they all here?"

Becker shrugs. "I just live here."

* * *

"Isn't this meant to be one of the most secure places in Britain?" Alex asked his mother who only laughed harshly.

"The ARC and its previous incarnations don't have a good record with security. You remember the stories of Helen Cutter."

Alex rolled his eyes. "And look what happened to her." He muttered as he slipped under the wire fence. After so many years of planning and waiting the moment was finally drawing near. The Browning in his back pocket felt like a lead weight as he crept alongside his mother and the pack of Hyaenadons.

The time was coming.


End file.
